Israeli Ministers Weigh Defying US Gaza Plan
Israeli ministers and security chiefs debated whether to defy President Trump’s plan for postwar Gaza, as the rift between the allies widened. The head of the Shin Bet security service was reported to have called Hamas’s agreement to the plan “a strategic ambush” designed to delay Israeli action. Mr Netanyahu has said Israel did not agree to the terms for disarming the group.
The internal debate laid bare how far Israel’s government is from embracing a framework Mr Trump has claimed it supports, and how much its hardliners distrust any deal that leaves Hamas time to regroup. With Israeli elections due in late October, domestic politics weigh heavily on Mr Netanyahu’s calculations. Some officials detected “steps in the right direction” as Israel eased its strikes, but Arab states have accused it of breaching the agreement. The plan’s survival hinges on bridging the gulf over sequencing and trust. Watch whether Israel breaks with Washington or falls into line.