Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu firmly rejected Defense Minister Yoav Gallant's dramatic call this evening for Israel to avoid imposing civil rule over Gaza after the conflict with Hamas.
Gallant, in a nationally televised speech, urged Netanyahu to "declare that Israel will not rule Gaza civilly" and instead work to establish "an alternative governing authority to Hamas in Gaza" with international support.
"We must eliminate Hamas' military capability and establish another entity to rule Gaza," Gallant stated. "A non-hostile Palestinian rule in Gaza is an Israeli interest." The Defense Minister warned that "an Israeli military administration in Gaza would become Israel's primary military effort, costing many casualties and a heavy economic price at the expense of other fronts."
Netanyahu's Rejection
However, Prime Minister Netanyahu swiftly rejected Gallant's position about an hour later, stating: "I am not willing to replace Hamastan with Fatahstan. The first condition for the day after is to eliminate Hamas, and do it without excuses." His remarks seemed to dismiss the idea of having the Palestinian Authority govern Gaza after the conflict, referring to it as "Fatahstan" because of the dominant Fatah faction led by Palestinian Presidnet Mahmoud Abbas- implying it could become another armed militia like Hamas ("Hamastan").
Hints at dismissing Gallant
Some ministers appeared to hint that Gallant could be dismissed over his divergence from the government's stance. National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir said: "Such a Defense Minister must be replaced in order to achieve the war's goals." Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi remarked: "As long as he is Defense Minister, military rule is certainly a bad option. We can sort this out." The rift highlights disagreements within Netanyahu's coalition over how to handle Gaza after the military campaign against Hamas.
