A government spokesperson said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has disbanded the war cabinet overseeing the Israel-Hamas War, according to multiple reports.
Netanyahu explained his decision was taken on the basis that there was “no more need for an extra branch of government,” the outlet reported. (RELATED: Videos Shows Israeli Troops Using Medieval Weaponry To Firebomb Enemy Area)
LATEST: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has disbanded his war cabinet, the small group of government officials who had been tasked with overseeing decisions about the war against Hamas, a spokesperson said. https://t.co/zOycJLlQJa
— ABC News (@ABC) June 17, 2024
“A PMO [Prime Minister’s Office] official tells me that since the war cabinet was part of Benny Gantz’s demand to join the war coalition, it is no longer relevant since he left last week,” Lazar Berman, a Times of Israel correspondent, tweeted.
PM Netanyahu told the security cabinet last night that the war cabinet has been officially disbanded.
A PMO official tells me that since the war cabinet was part of Benny Gantz’s demand to join the war coalition, it is no longer relevant since he left last week. >>
— Lazar Berman (@Lazar_Berman) June 17, 2024
Benny Gantz, a political rival of Netanyahu and an erstwhile member of the opposition, agreed to form a national unity government in the wake of Hamas’ Oct. 7 invasion of southern Israel that sparked the Israel-Hamas War, The Times of Israel reported. Gantz, as part of this deal, was included in a small war cabinet that also consisted of Prime Minister Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. Gantz and his political faction withdrew from the government June 9, citing disagreements with Netanyahu about the direction of the war, CNN reported.
Berman reported that the implications of this decision were that “Bibi and Gallant will hold ad hoc ‘consultations’ to make key decisions” about the war. The security cabinet will be convened at a greater frequency to discuss the war’s developments, a government spokesperson told The Jerusalem Post.
