Benjamin Netanyahu disbands Israeli war cabinet | CNN

CNN
 — 

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has disbanded the country’s war cabinet, an Israeli official has told CNN, just over a week after opposition leader Benny Gantz withdrew from the body.

“The security cabinet will continue to decide on matters regarding the war,” the official said, claiming Netanyahu “will hold smaller forums on sensitive matters.”

The war cabinet comprised Netanyahu, former Defense Minister and IDF chief of staff Gantz, current Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, as well as Netanyahu confidant Ron Dermer and former general Gadi Eisenkot as “observers.” It operated independently from the broader Israeli government and was is responsible for making decisions related to the fighting in Gaza.

It was unclear who specifically Netanyahu would now consult with over matters regarding the war in Gaza.

Gantz announced his resignation from the body last week, citing Netanyahu’s failure to devise a strategy for the war in Gaza and the future governance of the Strip.

Meanwhile, Netanyahu has faced growing calls from the far-right members of his coalition, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, to join the war cabinet, from which both were pointedly excluded at Gantz’s behest.

The war cabinet was formed five days after the Hamas-led terrorist attacks of October 7, when Gantz agreed to join an “emergency government.”

Announcing his “complex and painful decision” to leave the war cabinet on June 9, Gantz said, “Netanyahu prevents us from moving forward to a real victory [in Gaza].” Eisenkot also quit the war cabinet.

He accused Netanyahu of putting his own personal political considerations ahead of a post-war strategy for the Gaza Strip, claiming that “fateful strategic decisions are met with hesitancy and procrastination due to political considerations,” and urged the prime minister to hold an election in the coming months.

“I call on Netanyahu: set an agreed election date. Do not let our people be torn apart,” Gantz said.

After Gantz resigned from the cabinet, Ben-Gvir demanded to be allowed in. By dismantling the cabinet, Netanyahu avoids having to accede to that demand – or reject it.

Another interpretation is that without Gantz – and Eisenkot – in it, there was no longer any point in keeping the war cabinet going. Instead, an Israeli official tells CNN, Netanyahu will in future hold smaller forums to discuss sensitive matters relating to the war with Hamas. It’s unclear whether Ben-Gvir will be excluded from these as well.