Israel’s Smotrich threatens to bring down government if it accepts new Gaza cease-fire proposal

By Zein Khalil

JERUSALEM (AA) – Israel's far-right Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich threatened Sunday to bring down the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he accepts an Egyptian proposal for a Gaza-cease-fire.

“If you decide to fly a white flag and cancel the order to conquer Rafah immediately to complete the mission of destroying Hamas and restore peace for the residents of southern Israel and all of the country’s citizens, and return our abducted brothers and sisters who are held hostage to their homes – then the government you head will have no right of existence,” Smotrich said in a message on X.

He termed accepting the Egyptian cease-fire proposal as a “humiliating surrender.”

An Egyptian intelligence delegation held talks with Israeli officials on Friday to discuss a proposed cease-fire deal in the Gaza Strip.

The new proposal includes Israel’s willingness to discuss the “restoration of sustainable calm” in Gaza after an initial release of hostages on humanitarian grounds, two Israeli officials told Axios news website.

Hamas confirmed on Friday that it received a new cease-fire proposal and will respond to it soon.

The Palestinian group demands an end to Israel’s brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip in return for any hostage deal with Tel Aviv.

In the November 2022 elections, Smotrich and far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir joined forces and ran together with another far-right party, gaining an impressive 14 seats in the Knesset (Israel’s parliament).

If Smotrich’s Religious Zionism Party leaves the ruling coalition, Netanyahu’s right-wing government will depend on Benny Gantz, the head of the centrist National Unity Party, to stay in power.

Israel has launched a brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip since an Oct. 7 Hamas attack, which killed nearly 1,200 people.

More than 34,400 Palestinians have since been killed and thousands injured amid mass destruction and severe shortages of necessities.

More than six months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins, pushing 85% of the enclave’s population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine, according to the UN.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.

* Writing by Ikram Kouachi