Wed. Feb 19th, 2025

Expectations that Israel will ratify the deal today and Ben Gvir threatens to resign news


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Israeli Army Radio said that the mini-ministerial council will convene today, Friday, at 10:00 AM Jerusalem time, to ratify the deal regarding Gaza, amid threats by Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir to resign from the government if the deal is approved.

Israeli Army Radio quoted ministers that the government may hold a session today regarding the deal in an effort not to postpone its implementation until Monday. It also explained that estimates indicate that a list of the names of Palestinian prisoners who will be released will be published this evening.

For its part, the Israeli Broadcasting Authority quoted – from the head of the Prisoners’ Directorate in Benjamin Netanyahu’s office – that after the approval of the small council, the deal will proceed rapidly.

Doha announced on Wednesday evening the success of the Qatari-Egyptian-American mediation in reaching a ceasefire agreement in Gaza between the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) and Israel, with its implementation starting the day after tomorrow, Sunday, January 19.

The Israeli Prime Minister’s Office said that Netanyahu was informed by the negotiating team that a deal had been reached regarding the release of Israeli detainees in Gaza.

The office added that Netanyahu ordered the Security-Political Cabinet Council to be held today, Friday, to discuss ratifying the deal, with the Council of Ministers meeting later to ratify it as well.

Netanyahu also issued instructions to the relevant authorities to prepare to receive Israeli detainees in Gaza upon their return to Israel.

The office said that Israel is committed to achieving all the goals of the war, most importantly the return of all detainees, whether alive or dead.

For its part, the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation said that the Israeli delegation that participated in the negotiations left Doha and returned to Tel Aviv.

The Israeli Broadcasting Corporation had quoted two sources involved in the negotiations that the differences had been resolved and that the ceasefire agreement would be implemented.

In the same context, the Commission quoted the head of the Shas Party, Aryeh Deri, as saying that he had received confirmation that all differences in the agreement had been overcome, and that the deal was moving forward.

Axios also quoted an American source as saying that the final differences regarding the ceasefire deal in the Gaza Strip have been resolved.

Ben Gvir threatens

On the other hand, Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir threatened to resign from Netanyahu’s government if the deal was approved.

Ben Gvir criticized the deal, describing it as bad, and stipulating the liberation of hundreds of those he described as saboteurs, stressing that if it was decided to resume fighting against Hamas as his party requested, he would return to supporting the government.

In response to Ben Gvir’s statements, Netanyahu’s Likud Party said that whoever dismantles the right-wing government will be shamed forever.

The party explained, in a statement, that the deal secures the release of the maximum number of living hostages, and also allows Israel to return to fighting under an American guarantee and obtain the necessary weapons and means of war.

The statement also indicated that the deal maintains full control over the Philadelphia axis and the security belt surrounding the entire Gaza Strip, achieves dramatic security achievements and guarantees Israel’s security for generations to come, according to the text of the statement.

Smotrich demands guarantees

As for the position of the “Religious Zionism” party, Israeli media reported that its leader, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, met with Netanyahu in an attempt to reduce differences over the deal.

The Walla website reported on Friday morning – citing government sources – that Netanyahu and Smotrich had reached understandings, indicating that the crisis between them over the deal was on its way to being resolved.

The website also quoted people close to Smotrich that Smotrich’s demands were accepted after he assured Netanyahu that he would resign if the army did not prepare for a full-fledged war in Gaza.

Israeli Channel 12 had previously said that Smotrich is demanding written guarantees from Netanyahu to continue the war after the first phase of the deal.

America continues to put pressure

At the American level, the coordinator of strategic communications at the National Security Council, John Kirby, confirmed his confidence that the agreement will enter into force on Sunday.

For his part, US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin said that the ceasefire agreement in Gaza must be strictly implemented, and he considered that the ceasefire came too late for the victims of the war.

Austin considered that the agreement might open a new window of hope for Israelis and Palestinians after months of bloodshed and suffering, and he believed that Israelis and Palestinians should not be doomed to eternal conflict.

In a related context, US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken expressed his confidence in the start of the ceasefire agreement in Gaza on Sunday, and said that the agreement opens the way for a permanent ceasefire.

In Cairo, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry stressed today, Friday, the need for the parties to the agreement to adhere to all its provisions in accordance with the time frame that was agreed upon, expressing its hope The ceasefire agreement will lead to the restoration of stability and calm and reduce escalation in the Red Sea region.


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