Reacting to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s decision to dissolve the military cabinet, the White House on Monday called it an “internal” matter and said the Israeli minister had no other choice.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said the decision rested with Netanyahu. He added that the cabinet was an “internal measure” to better advise Netanyahu and give him guidance on the Gaza war. Kirby told a press briefing, referring to last week’s departure by Gantz:
We said at the time that we believed it was a worthwhile step, and we still hold by that. But with Mr. (Benny) Gantz’s decision to leave, I’m not sure that Prime Minister Netanyahu was left with a whole lot of other choices.
Tel Aviv announced on Monday that Netanyahu had dissolved the Military Cabinet, which was formed on October 11 2023, just days after Israel launched the war in Gaza on October 7.
According to public broadcaster KAN, following Gantz’s departure, far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir made an urgent request to join the Military Cabinet. Netanyahu reportedly dissolved it in response.
The government originally consisted of Netanyahu, Gantz, Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, Ron Dermer, Gadi Eizenkot and Shas party leader Aryeh Deri.
Former Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis commented on Netanyahu’s decision to dissolve the military cabinet:
Good riddance to Netanyahu’s war cabinet – a gross misnomer, as it was nothing more nothing less than a genocide cabinet. Now, let’s get rid of Netanyahu’s cabinet before moving ahead with the dis-establishment of Israel’s apartheid.
Army hopes to regain control in a fortnight
Meanwhile, the Israeli army command believes that full control over the southern part of the Gaza Strip will be established within two weeks.
The Israeli military is destroying a large number of booby traps in the town of Rafah in the south of the enclave. In total, the Israel Defence Forces have so far managed to destroy at least 550 Hamas soldiers in the Rafah area.
According to the IDF, “of the four Hamas battalions in Rafah, two are considered almost completely disbanded, while the capabilities of the other two have weakened.”
IDF officials noted that near the Philadelphi corridor between the Gaza Strip and Egypt, Israeli soldiers found hundreds of rockets, including dozens of long-range projectiles, aimed at central Israel.
