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Gantz refuses to meet with Ultra-Orthodox Jews, far-right leader

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Israeli media
14 Mar 2024 20:16

Gantz turns down a crucial meeting with Haredim leaders and Aryeh Deri, bringing to the forefront the mounting crises regarding an essential conscription law.

Benny Gantz, a key member of the Israeli war cabinet leaves after a meeting at the United States State Department, in Washington, the United States, on March 5, 2024. (AP)

The member of the war cabinet and co-leader of the "State Camp", Benny Gantz, has informed the Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, that he will not be present for a highly anticipated meeting regarding talks of a controversial corruption law on Thursday.

According to Israeli news website Ynet, the meeting was scheduled to be held between Gantz and leaders of the Ultra-Orthodox Haredi Jewish community and far-right leader Aryeh Deri of the Shas Party. The Haredim have largely been dismissed from military service in the Israeli occupation forces (IOF), as a result of their religious beliefs and a long history of verbal agreements with the founders of the Israeli regime.

However, the Israeli war on Gaza and the subsequent engagement with the Islamic Resistance in Lebanon on the Northern Front has led top Israeli political and military officials to call for equal conscription for all Israeli settlers, be they ultra-Orthodox or not.

Leading these demands are Israeli war cabinet ministers Gadi Eizenkot and Benny Gantz and war cabinet minister and Security Minister of the larger coalition government Yoav Gallant.

According to Israeli media outlets, Gantz said regarding the meeting scheduled for Thursday with leaders of the Haredim community, "Now is the time for action, not empty discussions," affirming that "the State Camp will be a partner in any discussion or process that leads towards a real plan for conscription, but it will not be a partner in maneuvers and gatherings at the expense of security needs."

The revelation marks yet another road bump in the IOF's efforts to bolster its ranks after suffering substantial losses in the Gaza Strip and the Northern Front. Moreover, Gallant insisted that any future conscription law he submits for ratification should garner the support of all war cabinet members.

Netanyahu considers abolishing war cabinet

Crises within Israeli decision-making circles keep on mounting as Israeli news outlets reported on Wednesday that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is considering the possibility of abolishing the war cabinet and referring decisions to an expanded coalition government, according to Israeli media outlets.

Israeli authorities consolidated a crucial decision-making process in a five-member council that includes Netanyahu, Security Minister Yoav Gallant, the "National Unity" leaders Benny Gantz and Gadi Eizenkot, and Minister of Strategic Affairs Ron Dermer, dubbed the war cabinet.

Although Gantz and Eizenkot, among other popular Israeli politicians, continued a major part of the Israeli opposition to the larger coalition government, the leaders of the "National Unity" movement put their differences with Netanyahu aside and joined efforts to launch the genocidal aggression on the Gaza Strip.

However, the war cabinet has been plagued with squabbles on multiple strategic and in-house disputes, the latest of which was Gantz's unauthorized visit to the US and other Western countries.