The United Nations Security Council on Monday passed a resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire in the Gaza Strip during the remaining weeks of Ramadan, breaking a five-month impasse during which the United States vetoed three calls for a halt to the fighting. The resolution passed with 14 votes in favor and the United States […]
Read MoreTag: Gantz, Benny
Imagining a Different Gaza War
There seems to be a broad consensus atop the Democratic Party about the war in Gaza, structured around two propositions. First, after the attacks of Oct. 7, Israel has the right to defend itself and defeat Hamas. Second, the way Israel is doing this is “over the top,” in President Biden’s words. The vast numbers […]
Read MoreU.S. Call for Gaza Cease-Fire Runs Into Russia-China Veto
A U.S. bid to have the U.N. Security Council call for “an immediate and sustained cease-fire” in the Gaza Strip failed on Friday, after Russia and China vetoed the American resolution that included some of Washington’s strongest language since the start of the war. The resolution reflected the Biden administration’s growing frustration both with the […]
Read MoreSchumer’s Critique Reveals Widening U.S.-Israel Divisions, Analysts Say
Senator Chuck Schumer’s harsh critique of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government revealed the widening gap between Israel and its most important ally, the United States, analysts said on Friday. But even some of Mr. Netanyahu’s rivals appeared reluctant to seize on the comments while the country is focused on the war in Gaza. […]
Read MoreA Popular Israeli Minister’s Meeting in London Sends a Message to Netanyahu
When Benny Gantz, a member of Israel’s war cabinet, met David Cameron, Britain’s foreign secretary, in London on Wednesday, he got a sharp message that Israel must do more to allow humanitarian aid to flow into Gaza. It was the kind of minister-level meeting that would normally draw modest attention amid the flurry of high-level […]
Read MoreKamala Harris to Meet With Israel’s Gantz and Push for Pause in Fighting in Gaza
Vice President Kamala Harris, who has emerged as one of the leading voices for Palestinians in closed-door meetings at the White House, is expected to press for a pause in fighting in Gaza with a member of Israel’s war cabinet, Benny Gantz, at the White House on Monday afternoon. The vice president is also expected […]
Read MoreMany Israelis Want Netanyahu Out. But There Is No Simple Path to Do It.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel is on his last legs, it is widely believed, and will be forced to relinquish his post once the war against Hamas in Gaza ends. He is historically unpopular in the opinion polls and blamed for the governmental and security failures that led to the Oct. 7 attack by […]
Read MoreNetanyahu’s Bind: Compromise in Gaza or Power at Home
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel is fighting two parallel battles, one in Gaza and another at home — and neither is going according to plan. In Gaza, Mr. Netanyahu is leading a military campaign to defeat Hamas and free the remaining Israeli hostages captured during the Oct. 7 attack on Israel. At home, he […]
Read MorePlans for Gaza’s ‘Day After’ Seem Ever Distant
As the war in Gaza grinds on, there is increasing talk of some “day after” formula for the broken territory. But that notion is an ephemeral one — there is not going to be a bright line between war and peace in Gaza, even if some sort of negotiated settlement is reached. Israel has made […]
Read MoreSupreme Court Ruling Adds to Questions Over Kind of State Israel Will Be
“Bibi is still their champion,” Mr. Avishai said. Mr. Netanyahu has also made clear, as recently as a news conference on Saturday, that he does not intend to resign, even after the war and even as his Likud party sinks in the opinion polls. A Channel 13 poll said that elections now would secure Likud […]
Read MoreIsrael’s War Cabinet Reflects the National Consensus, for Now
The five men who make up Israel’s war cabinet have more than a century of military experience among them and decades of political and diplomatic know-how. The cabinet was formed five days after Israel declared war on Gaza to temporarily unify Israel’s political factions and ensure its steadiest hands were in charge during a national […]
Read MoreIsraeli Intelligence Errors Over Hamas Attack Plan Prompt Scrutiny, but Little Backlash
Israel’s military leadership faced heightened public scrutiny this week after a string of damaging revelations in the Israeli media and The New York Times suggested that senior officers had ignored or dismissed intelligence reports about the likelihood of a major Hamas attack. According to those reports, the Israeli military obtained a copy of a battle […]
Read MoreIsraelis Are Angry at Netanyahu, but Replacing Him Is Difficult
Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, has weathered many controversies, including accusations of corruption and allegations this year that a contentious overhaul of the country’s judiciary was a poorly disguised power grab. But he now faces the greatest crisis of his political career. The backlash to his government’s failures to prevent the Oct. 7 Hamas-led […]
Read MoreIsrael Raises Alarms by Suggesting ‘Indefinite’ Role in Gaza
But in Gaza, the Authority will be less likely to agree. “I doubt very much, after the experience of the West Bank, that there will be anyone willing to repeat that experience on the Palestinian or Arab side,” he said. Zakaria al-Qaq, a Palestinian analyst, suggested that what Israel was discussing represented occupation, whatever it’s […]
Read MoreFor Israel’s Netanyahu, War in Gaza and at Home
The social media post went up online at 1:10 a.m. Sunday, while most Israelis were sleeping. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had a message: His military and security chiefs, he said, had failed to provide him with any warning of the surprise Hamas assault on Oct. 7. He appeared to be placing all the blame on […]
Read MoreNetanyahu Apologizes for Blaming Israeli Officials in Hamas Attack
The rifts and disarray among Israel’s top leaders erupted into the open on Sunday when Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared to blame the military and security establishment for the failures that led to the surprise Hamas assault on Oct. 7 — even as Israeli forces were broadening their ground war in Gaza. The comments by […]
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