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Israeli Defense Chiefs Believe Netanyahu Isn't Interested in Gaza Deal, Top Official Says [1]

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Date: 2024-08-02

Israeli defense chiefs believe Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is not interested in a hostage deal/cease-fire with Hamas, a senior member of the Israeli negotiating team told Haaretz on Friday.

Earlier on Friday, Israel's Channel 12 reported on a tense exchange between Netanyahu and the defense chiefs, in which Shin Bet head Ronen Bar said, "It feels like the prime minister doesn't want the framework that's on the table." Turning to Netanyahu, he added that if that is the case, "you should tell us."

The report also quoted the head of the Missing and Captive Soldiers Division in the IDF, Maj. Gen. (res.) Nitzan Alon, who told Netanyahu: "You know that all the parameters you've added [to the framework] will not be accepted and there will be no deal."

Mossad chief David Barnea stressed to Netanyahu, "There is a deal on the table. If we delay, we could miss the opportunity. We have to take it."

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Netanyahu, per the report, reacted angrily, accusing the defense chiefs of being "soft."

"You don't know how to negotiate. You're putting words in my mouth," he was quoted as saying. "Instead of pressuring me, pressure [Hamas leader] Sinwar," the prime minister reportedly told his security chiefs.

Open gallery view David Barnea and Ronen Bar, in May. Credit: Olivier Fitoussi

The senior official who spoke to Haaretz described the Wednesday meeting as a culmination of the brewing crisis between Netanyahu and Israel's defense chiefs. "There is a chasm between us and the prime minister," he said. "Everyone is convinced that Israel's new additions will blow up the talks, and, conversely, that we have the security tools to handle a deal that doesn't include them."

Haaretz has learned that the team offered Netanyahu to draft a better proposal than the one on the table – which includes changes the prime minister had dictated, chiefly among them his insistence on military control of the Gaza's Netzarim Corridor and along the Egyptian border. Netanyahu rejected the idea, saying he prefers to negotiate the current deal but "on his own terms."

The Prime Minister's Office denied the report on Channel 12, saying Hamas has not agreed to the terms of the deal. "It even remains unclear if Hamas had backed down from its demand for an Israeli commitment to end the war and completely withdraw from the Gaza Strip, without the option of resuming the fighting," Netanyahu's office said.

Open gallery view A view of destroyed buildings in Gaza, as seen from southern Israel August 1, 2024. Credit: Amir Cohen/ REUTERS

The statement added, "No agreement has been reached regarding the number of living hostages to be released, Israel's presence [along the Egypt border]," as well as "other important details. The demands Israel is insisting on are consistent with the framework from May 27. Contrary to the report, the prime minister did not add a thing, while Hamas is the one demanding dozens of changes."

The Hostages and Missing Persons Families Forum stated on Friday evening: "The disturbing information broadcast tonight on Channel 12 News suggests that the prime minister has decided to backtrack on the deal he himself outlined. We will not allow the hostages to be abandoned! We demand that the negotiation team and the heads of security agencies immediately address the public and provide a reliable report on who is obstructing the negotiations for the release of the hostages and their motives."

Sabotaging a deal

In Israel's security establishment, as well as in the U.S., Qatar, and Egypt, it has been assessed for months that Netanyahu is not interested in a deal. This is partly to maintain the survival of his government, amid pressures from the far-right coalition members demanding the continuation of fighting in the Gaza Strip.

Open gallery view Far-right coalition partners Bezalel Smotrich, and Itamar Ben-Gvir. Credit: Olivier Fitoussi, Emil Salman

Senior officials familiar with the negotiations claimed that on several occasions in recent months, Netanyahu preferred to continue the fighting rather than finalize a deal that was on the table. These assessments intensified in June after Netanyahu, in an interview with Channel 14, retracted from U.S. President Joe Biden's proposal and clarified that he was only willing to advance the first phase of the emerging deal, which includes the release of some hostages.

The main stumbling block was Netanyahu's demand to establish a mechanism to prevent armed individuals from moving from southern Gaza to the north, rather than just a general requirement to prevent their movement. Under U.S. pressure, this Israeli reservation was ultimately formulated vaguely to avoid causing Hamas to derail the talks.

According to a source close to Netanyahu, "The discussion on the nature of the mechanism will be postponed to the proximity talks between the parties, which are expected to begin immediately after Hamas announces its agreement to the Israeli position paper." He stated that this was a move expected to materialize in the coming days, before the assassinations of senior Hezbollah figure Fuad Shukr in Beirut and Hamas political bureau chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran.

Open gallery view People protest in Tel Aviv for a hostage deal, marking 300 days of captivity on Thursday. Credit: Itai Ron

Last week, Haaretz reported that a source who spoke with the prime minister in Washington struggled to say whether Netanyahu is seeking to reach a deal or sabotage it. "Netanyahu is willing to do a lot in order to resume the negotiations, but he is willing to do much less to show flexibility in a way that will enable the release of the hostages," the source said.

"Netanyahu is convinced that he knows better than anyone else how to negotiate, but he forgets that negotiations must also have a result. He digs in on issues that are liable to lead to the collapse of the talks, instead of being flexible and bringing about the release of the hostages, whose lives are in danger every day," the source continued.

Last month, Haaretz's Amos Harel reported that the dispute between Netanyahu and the heads of the security establishment intensified due to Hamas's response to the latest proposal presented by the mediators. The response at that time included specifics on the section addressing which issues would be discussed during the transitional period between the humanitarian phase of the deal (the release of women, the elderly, the sick, and the injured among the hostages) and its final phase in which the remaining hostages would be released, and the bodies of hostages who were killed or died in Hamas captivity would be returned to Israel.

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[1] Url: https://archive.is/o/4IVv7/https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/2024-08-02/ty-article/israeli-defense-chiefs-believe-netanyahu-isnt-interested-in-gaza-deal-top-official-says/00000191-14a0-d4cf-afb5-5cf5a8aa0000

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