At a security cabinet meeting on Sunday night, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told his top officials that he had the backing of President Trump to reject a temporary Gaza ceasefire deal and to escalate military operations in Gaza, The Jerusalem Post has reported.
“Forget the partial deals. Go in with full force. Finish it,” Netanyahu said, relaying what Trump told him.
Hamas recently accepted a proposal for a 60-day ceasefire, during which the two sides are meant to negotiate a long-term truce, and 10 Israeli captives would be released. The US and Israel previously proposed a virtually identical deal, but despite that, Israel hasn’t responded to Hamas and is pushing ahead with a massive escalation to take over Gaza City.
Trump is backing Israel’s plans to conquer Gaza City after a UN and US-backed hunger monitors determined famine was taking place in the area due to the Israeli siege. Israel’s plans involve the forced displacement of more than 1 million civilians sheltering in Gaza City, followed by the complete destruction of the city.
According to the Post, during the security cabinet meeting, Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir sought to vote on a resolution stating “no to a partial deal,” but Netanyahu said it was unnecessary. “There’s no need for a vote. It’s not on the agenda, and we must focus on dismantling Hamas,” he said.
The report said the majority of government ministers oppose a deal with Hamas, although Haaretz reported that all of the military and security officials at the meeting, including IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir, are in favor of it. “There is a framework on the table, and we need to take it. The operation in Gaza created conditions for the return of hostages,” Zamir said.
Zamir has been warning against the escalation, saying it will likely kill the remaining living Israeli captives and result in heavy IDF casualties. Netanyahu and his allies reportedly told Zamir that if he didn’t like it, he could quit, and the IDF chief ultimately fell in line and has publicly expressed support for the full Israeli military occupation of Gaza.
