Disputes escalate between Israel Premier, Defence Minister over Gaza-Egypt corridor

Disputes have escalated between Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and his Defence Minister, Yoav Gallant, over the army’s presence in the Philadelphi Corridor, a demilitarised area along the border between the Gaza Strip and Egypt, Anadolu Agency reports.

Netanyahu sees the axis as a “lifeline for Hamas”, ruling out any withdrawal of the Israeli forces from the Corridor, the Israeli public broadcaster, KAN, said.

Netanyahu’s hard-line position is seen by opposition leaders and families of Israeli hostages in Gaza as hindering efforts to reach a Gaza ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement with Hamas.

Last Thursday, Israel’s security cabinet voted to maintain Israeli military presence at the Corridor, a position that drew fire from the Defence Minister.

Gallant called Israel’s control of the Corridor “an unnecessary constraint that we’ve placed on ourselves”.

“We will not live up to the war goals we set for ourselves,” he said during a security cabinet meeting on Sunday. “The decision made Thursday was reached under the assumption that there is time, but if we want live hostages, there’s no time.”

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“We endangered soldiers for decades for single individuals. How are we to treat the lives of 30? It’s moral bankruptcy,” the Defence Minister said, in reference to a 2001 prisoner swap deal with Hamas under which more than 1,000 Palestinian detainees were released in return for captured Israeli soldier, Gilad Shalit.

During the meeting, Gallant reminded Netanyahu, “You released 1,027 prisoners, including Hamas leader, Yahya Sinwar, in exchange for just one man, Gilad Shalit.”

KAN, citing sources close to Netanyahu, said the Israeli Premier is not expected to dismiss his Defence Minister anytime soon, despite their strained relations.

Public anger against Netanyahu’s government has grown after the army said Sunday that it had recovered the bodies of six hostages from southern Gaza.

In response, the country’s largest labour union, Histadrut, called a one-day general strike to pressure the Israeli government to reach an immediate ceasefire and prisoner swap deal with Hamas.

Israel estimates that more than 100 hostages are still being held by the Palestinian group, Hamas, in Gaza, some of whom are believed to have been already killed.

For months, the US, Qatar and Egypt have been trying to reach an agreement between Israel and Hamas to ensure a prisoner exchange and a ceasefire and allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza. But mediation efforts have been stalled due to Netanyahu’s refusal to meet Hamas’s demands to stop the war.

Israel has continued its brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip following an attack by the Palestinian group, Hamas, last  7 October, despite a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire.

The onslaught has resulted in over 40,700 Palestinian deaths, mostly women and children, and over 94,100 injuries, according to local health authorities.

An ongoing blockade of Gaza has led to severe shortages of food, clean water and medicine, leaving much of the region in ruins.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, whose latest ruling ordered it to immediately halt its military operation in the southern city of Rafah, where more than 1 million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on 6 May.

READ: Israel Finance Minister opposes release of Palestinian prisoners in potential Gaza ceasefire deal