The National Security Minister of Israel, Itamar Ben-Gvir has threatened to topple the administration of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Ben-Gvir said if Netanyahu ends the war in the Gaza Strip without launching an offensive on the southern city of Rafah, his government will be toppled.
Posting on X, Ben-Gvir wrote: “If the Prime Minister decides to end the war without an extensive attack on Rafah in order to defeat Hamas, he will not have a mandate to continue serving as Prime Minister.”
Gvir’s threat comes amid reports of a possible breakthrough in Israel’s indirect negotiations with Hamas to reach a hostage-prisoners exchange deal and a cease-fire.
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Despite the global outcry over the catastrophic situation in the Palestinian enclave, the Israeli premier has long expressed his intention to attack Rafah, where over 1.5 million refugees have taken refuge.
Netanyahu rules with 64 seats in the 120-member Knesset, or parliament. His coalition has five other parties, including two far-right parties led by Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir, who have a combined 13 seats. Sixty-one seats are needed for a majority government.
Israel has waged a military offensive on Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023, cross-border attack by Palestinian group Hamas which claimed about 1,200 lives.
No fewer than 33,000 Palestinians have since been killed leading to wide scale destruction, displacement and conditions of famine.
In another report, as Israel’s military assault on Gaza reached its half-year mark, tens of thousands of Israelis have taken to the streets to protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Organizers of the protest said about 100,000 people converged at a Tel Aviv crossroads now called Democracy Square.
Africa Today News, New York reports that the protesters were bearing placards with various inscriptions, chanting “elections now”, as they called for the prime minister’s resignation.
The war in Gaza is set to enter its seventh month today (Sunday).