Benny Gantz, an Israeli War Cabinet member, resigns from government over lack of plan for postwar Gaza

A member of Israel’s three-man War Cabinet announced his resignation on Sunday over Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s handling of the war in Gaza.

Benny Gantz, a popular former centrist military chief and one of the prime minister’s most prominent critics, joined Netanyahu’s government shortly after the Oct. 7 Hamas attack in a show of unity. His presence also boosted Israel’s credibility with the country’s international partners as he has good working relations with U.S. officials.

Gantz said Netanyahu is making “total victory impossible” and that the government needs to put the return of the hostages seized Oct. 7 by Hamas “above political survival.”

“That is why we are leaving the emergency government today, with a heavy heart but with full confidence,” Gantz said at a televised news conference.

While his departure does not immediately pose a threat to Netanyahu, who still controls a majority coalition in parliament, it forces the Israeli leader to become more heavily reliant on his far-right allies.

Last month Gantz threatened to depart the government by June 8 if it didn’t adopt a new plan. He gave them a three-week deadline.

At the time, Gantz spelled out a six-point plan that included the return of scores of hostages, ending Hamas’ rule, demilitarizing the Gaza Strip, and establishing an international administration of civilian affairs. It also supports efforts to normalize relations with Saudi Arabia.

He scrapped a planned news conference Saturday night after four Israeli hostages were dramatically rescued from Gaza earlier in the day. According to the Hamas-run Gaza’s Health Ministry, at least 274 Palestinians were killed and hundreds more were wounded in the raid. The Israeli military said its forces came under heavy fire during the complex daytime operation and that “under 100” Palestinians were killed, though it was not clear how many of them were militants or civilians.

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