Frustration with Netanyahu mounts as Gaza talks falter

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is facing anger in Israel and abroad over his handling of talks on a Gaza ceasefire that have faltered, just as fears have grown that the crisis could spiral into war with Iran, three Israeli officials said. 

Divisions between Netanyahu and the defence establishment over a deal, which could help defuse the escalating crisis that risks engulfing the Middle East, have also surfaced in public remarks and behind closed doors, in angry exchanges leaked on Saturday to the Israeli press. 

Over the past four weeks three Israeli officials, one on the negotiating team and two with close knowledge of the talks, have voiced concern that politics was undermining the chances of a deal. 

"The feeling is that the prime minister is avoiding making a decision about the deal and is not pushing for it full force," one of the officials told Reuters on Sunday.     

Some of Netanyahu's far-right coalition partners have threatened government stability should the war end before Hamas is defeated.

Netanyahu has repeatedly said the release of the remaining 115 hostages held in Gaza since the Hamas-led Oct. 7 assault on Israel that triggered the war was a top priority.

But the issue has become more urgent as the war in Gaza threatens to spill out into a wider regional conflict following a dramatic ratcheting up of tensions between Israel and Iran over the past week.

The Oct. 7 attackers killed 1,200 people and took more than 250 captive, according to Israeli tallies. Gaza's Hamas-run health authorities say more than 39,000 Palestinians have since been killed in fighting in the densely populated coastal enclave.

TENSIONS LAID BARE

Tensions between Netanyahu - who insists he is safeguarding Israel's security - and some in his negotiating team were laid bare in his public remarks on Sunday.  

"I am prepared to go very far to release all of our hostages, while maintaining the security of Israel," Netanyahu said in televised remarks at his cabinet meeting.

"Our commitment stands in complete contrast to the leaks and mendacious briefings on the issue of our hostages." 

Efforts by the United States, Egypt and Qatar to secure a deal between Israel and Hamas had gained momentum over July but have since ground to a near halt after new terms were introduced to an agreed framework presented by Washington in May.

The framework involves three phases, with the first seeing a six-week ceasefire and the release of women, elderly and wounded hostages in exchange for hundreds of Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.

But sources have told Reuters a new Israeli condition that displaced Palestinians should be screened as they return to the enclave's north when the ceasefire begins was among the sticking points.

The killing on Wednesday of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran has further complicated matters, though the fighter group has not shut the door entirely on negotiators. 

"We will continue to apply military pressure on Hamas and its senior figures, until the return of all of our hostages and achieving all of the war goals," Netanyahu said.

"Anyone who wants the release of our hostages must pressure Hamas, not the government of Israel."

Netanyahu's remarks came in response to a flurry of reports over the weekend. One, by N12 News, quoted US President Joe Biden telling Netanyahu in their Thursday phone call to "stop bullshitting me" about advancing the talks.

Netanyahu's office said he does not comment on his conversations with the US president. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the remarks, which were also reported by Haaretz newspaper, citing a senior Biden administration official.

"The people who are leaking these things out of meetings want to pressure the prime minister to make a bad deal. But what these leaks are doing is encouraging Hamas to add more and more demands," a fourth Israeli official told Reuters on Monday. 

RED LINES

A second N12 report cited Israeli security chiefs, including Defence Minister Yoav Gallant and the head of the Shin Bet domestic security service Ronen Bar, casting doubt during a Wednesday meeting on Netanyahu's commitment to a hostage deal.

Gallant, according to the report, told Netanyahu that the new terms he introduced have made a deal impossible. The Shin Bet declined to comment on closed-door discussions. Gallant's office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.      

But in public remarks, Gallant and Israel's military chief Herzi Halevi have made a point of noting that after months of battering Hamas in Gaza forces can handle any challenges posed by a ceasefire, at the same time stressing the importance of sealing a deal that would see hostages freed.

Their messaging over the past few weeks has been in stark contrast to Netanyahu frequently citing his "red lines" on Israel's security in any deal. He has denied introducing new terms and has traded blame with Hamas over the stalemate. 

"We have insisted on our red lines, and we will continue to insist on them – both in the face of our enemies and our friends," Netanyahu said on Sunday.