If Gantz leaves, Netanyahu's far-right gov't will have no more excuses - opinion

One thing in particular stands out regarding Benny Gantz's recent speech calling out Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu: a senior member of the war cabinet, former IDF chief of staff, and defense minister, implied that the Israeli prime minister is influenced by political considerations during wartime, instead of national security.

Gantz joins the statement of Yoav Gallant, a Likud member and Netanyahu's appointed defense minister in his government, who gave a similar speech last week. Gadi Eisenkot, needless to say, is likely of a similar mind.

I can confirm here that there are other ministers in both cabinets and in the government's plenum who know this reality: Israel is in a long and difficult war that threatens, at any moment, to break out and become a regional war of survival, led by a politician who prefers political considerations related to his personal survival over the national security considerations required for the continued survival of the country.

Netanyahu values his own political survival over Israel's safety

Between the months of July and October 2023, Netanyahu received a number of dramatic strategic warnings from the heads of his security branches. I am not referring to public warnings or published documents, but rather to behind-the-scenes warnings that Netanyahu heard from the chief of staff, the head of the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency), the head of the Mossad, the head of Military Intelligence, etc. They discussed the situation among themselves, but also went to speak with the prime minister. In my estimation, no prime minister, at any stage of Israel's existence in the modern era, has received such a collection of severe warnings, on the brink of hysteria, from the individuals entrusted with Israel's security.

Netanyahu, as is known, ignored them. He was arrogant, his ego was inflated, he did not take things seriously. All that concerned him was to continue to please Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich and to pave crooked paths to advance the authoritarian revolution led by the thugs of his government, a revolution that was dimmed by determined public protest.

And so, the warnings that are currently coming from the heads of the security branches, the same people who warned prior to October 7, have escalated. Israel, they say, is facing the greatest and most immediate danger it has faced since its establishment. The current situation, difficult in itself, can turn into an unparalleled catastrophe at any moment if the northern front is taken with full force. It's on the table, it's possible, it's closer than ever.

This can happen much sooner than we think. The Iranians have lost their fear, the ring of fire with which they surrounded Israel is ready and prepared all around, the US is entering election season, and Israel is torn from within, torn apart, between its stubborn followers of the self-proclaimed messiah and everyone else. Israel is likened to a whale that has begun to bleed in the water, attracting a congregation of sharks from all directions.

To all this one must add the volatile and dangerous situation in the Palestinian territories, where Ben-Gvir and Smotrich are constantly trying to increase the stakes and friction, and also the Arab citizens of Israel, who have so far shown surprising restraint but their disappointment with the state and its disregard for them and their problems is growing and festering.

Above all, there is a prime minister whose only concern is to continue pleasing his partners: on one side the extremists, the performance artists, believers in the "Decisive Plan" or perfect chaos. On the other, the ultra-Orthodox, who are not willing to hear about equal burden-sharing, not willing to compromise, convinced that every time we somehow manage to be saved it is thanks to their prayers, and every time a disaster occurs it is because of our sins.

Gantz started the countdown. The deadline is June 8. The date corresponds with the High Court of Justice's deadline regarding the conscription law (June 2). Gantz demands clear answers and decisions regarding conscription, the issue of the hostages, and the "day after" in Gaza.

The topic of "the day after" is the great obstacle currently standing between Israel and the strategic-historical-dramatic achievement that will bring to a close the the horrifying events that began on October 7. It is something that Israel thirsts for, but is prevented from getting: Netanyahu's disastrous connection to Ben-Gvir and Smotrich prevents him from saying anything related to a political solution, or any involvement of the Shin Bet in a solution in Gaza.

This is all that is required of him for the US to send him his lifeline: Normalization with Saudi Arabia, and the official establishment of the American-Israeli-Sunni strategic alliance against Iran and the Shi'ite axis. Netanyahu, as of now, is close to messing it up. Gantz tried to raise the issue before it's too late. This is not politics - this is history. It will be a disgrace if Israel misses this chance.

Netanyahu's followers began yesterday to lament Gantz's retreat. What will happen? Military decisions will not be made by consensus and divisions will grow. It shows a lack of responsibility in a time of war. Members of Knesset and ministers attacked Gantz like a pack of hyenas on a wounded zebra. The fact that this man joined Netanyahu twice to save the country has already been forgotten.

I am unsure of who is right: Yair Lapid, who did not join Netanyahu's governments and preferred to lead opposition from the outside (recently he delivered one of his strongest speeches in the Knesset); Benny Gantz, who did join; Avigdor Liberman, who agreed to join but on his terms; and Gideon Sa'ar, who joined and left earlier. One thing I am willing to acknowledge: all of these believe they did what was right for the benefit of the country. You can criticize Gantz and Eizenkot for their decision, but even the critics know that they did it out of patriotism, out of a sense of responsibility, out of a firm belief that this is the right step that needs to be taken to save the country.

They might have been wrong. I doubt whether history will be able to judge here too. The problem is that before everything else, there is a prime minister who constantly does what is good for him, but bad for the country.

Netanyahu knows better than all of us how much damage his rotten and toxic alliance with the extremists causes Israel. He also knows the extent of Israel's yearning for a true conscription law. He knows that no one can enter Gaza the day after the war except for Palestinians who are not Hamas members, and he knows that the alliance with the US is a million times more important than the alliance with haredi party leaders Moshe Gafni and Yitzhak Goldknopf. He knows all of this, and continues to lead us into the abyss.

Gantz's expected departure is Netanyahu's nightmare. He is sending his fanatic followers to defame Gantz, in the same conditioned reflex that has poisoned the atmosphere before, but he is scared of the possibility that soon only he, Ben-Gvir, and Smotrich will remain. There will be no one else to blame. There will be no excuses.

The right-wing government will need to prove itself again. After failing the first time and leading us to two cumulative disasters (the judicial reform and the war), it will now exclusively take the reins.

The common denominator for Yoav Gallant, Benny Gantz, and Gadi Eisenkot is responsibility. They are people who served for decades in the IDF and share this ultimate sense of responsibility for the country's well-being. Among the three of them flows an ocean of bad blood. Gantz was appointed as chief of staff in place of Gallant. Eisenkot inherited the post from Gantz. Until recently, Gallant despised them. But when Israel faces an existential threat, when the cannons roar and the casualties pile up, Gantz, Gallant, and Eisenkot will do what needs to be done: identify the country's supreme interest and act accordingly. 

That's the reason why even clear rivals like Yitzhak Rabin and Ariel Sharon always knew, in moments of truth, to respect one another.

Against all this, there is Netanyahu. A unique exemplar, a political animal the likes of which has never been seen in Israel before, who believes that is prosperity, survival, and peace come before the country. Why? Because without it, the country is lost.

Gallant and Gantz are coordinated. This is clear as the sun. Both understand the situation. Both recognize the dangers approaching and piling up against us. Both know that the stain of failure and disaster may also spread to them, and it will be impossible to escape it. Gantz has been thinking about his speech for several weeks, but he preferred to let Gallant go first.

The question is just what will happen now.