To whom can Israel abandon the ruins of Gaza, once the bulk of military operations are completed? For the army, the case has been heard since January. For more than four months, the Israeli general staff has been imploring the government, behind closed doors, to complete the efforts of its troops. These generals are calling for the re-establishment of a Palestinian civilian government in the enclave, which would partly relieve them of the responsibility of ensuring the survival of two million displaced people. A complete loss. On Wednesday May 15, the Minister of Defense, Yoav Gallant, ended up publicly expressing this impatience.
General Gallant puts his prime minister and the leader of his party, the Likud, to the wall. He affirms that by refusing to draw a political outcome to this war, Benjamin Netanyahu is imposing on his country an impossible choice: accept that Hamas reconstitutes its rule in what remains of the Gaza Strip or reestablish an Israeli military regime there. . Like the man who administered the enclave between its conquest, in 1967, and the creation of the Palestinian Authority (PA), in 1994, following the Oslo Accords.
“The ‘day after Hamas’ will only be achieved if Palestinian entities take control of Gaza, accompanied by international actors, establishing an alternative government to Hamas’ power. This is above all an interest of the State of Israel”advances General Gallant, without going so far as to name the only possible alternative: the PA of President Mahmoud Abbas and his party, Fatah, which no Israeli elected official anymore dares to mention as a partner.
“Military rule in Gaza would become the main security and military effort of the State of Israel in the years to come, to the detriment of other areas. The price to pay would be bloodshed and casualties, as well as a heavy economic toll”, warns the minister.
Slow conquest of Rafah
Mr. Gallant deplores that the Prime Minister has postponed any debate on this political dimension of the war since October 2023, ignoring the initial recommendations of the general staff. For a week, senior Israeli officers have been passing this message themselves, under cover of anonymity, to Israeli journalists.
They are putting pressure on the prime minister at a time when negotiations with Hamas for a ceasefire and the release of hostages are once again at a standstill. The top brass seek to dispel a myth, that of a “total victory”, purely military, promised by Mr. Netanyahu since February. They also intend to prevent the Prime Minister from taking advantage of the relaunch of land operations in the enclave to further postpone any decision.
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