Ongoing negotiations to try to settle the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip have not reached a deal, but both sides have agreed to a 24-hour extension of the current ceasefire to give the two sides more time to talk.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been threatening “massive retaliation” if the ceasefire expires without Hamas agreeing to the Cairo pact, while his own cabinet seems very much split on the matter as well.
Indeed, Israeli cabinet officials accuse Netanyahu of trying to keep the terms of the Cairo pact secret, and Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman is said to have gotten his hands on a copy to confront Netanyahu about the terms. Israel has not agreed to the deal either, and many in the cabinet are opposed to peace on any terms.
Netanyahu reassured the ministers that the deal as written was not accepted, though anger boiled over with Lieberman and Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon, who is seen as more favorable toward the pact, storming out, and forcing an early end. There was no vote on accepting the pact, but cabinet members say the cabinet members are overwhelmingly opposed.