Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s far-right coalition partners slammed the ceasefire proposal from US President Donald Trump in their first statements since Hamas said it was ready to immediately enter negotiations to finalize a deal.
Israel’s Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir threatened to quit the government “if, after the release of the hostages, Hamas continues to exist.” In a statement, Ben Gvir said, “We will not be part of a national defeat that would be shameful and that would become a ticking time bomb for the next massacre.”
The Trump proposal grants amnesty to any members of Hamas who “commit to peaceful co-existence” with Israel.
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich called it a “serious mistake” to conduct negotiations with Hamas not under fire.
“The Prime Minister’s decision to stop the offensive in Gaza and, for the first time, conduct negotiations not under fire is a serious mistake and a sure recipe for Hamas to buy time and for a growing erosion of Israel’s position,” Smotrich said in a post on X.
Israel had said in the past that it would only negotiate with Hamas while the Israeli military is still bombarding Gaza, viewing it as a way of applying military pressure to Hamas. But Trump called on Israel to immediately halt its bombing of Gaza, effectively forcing Netanyahu to curtail Israel’s assault on Gaza City and across the battered enclave.
Neither of the two far-right lawmakers are threatening to leave the government immediately. Instead, they both indicate they will wait to see what happens after the hostages are released, which is the first phase of Trump’s ceasefire proposal.
As we reported earlier, Netanyahu has summoned both of them for a meeting this evening to Trump’s ceasefire proposal, according to two Israeli officials.
[SRC] https://www.cnn.com/world/live-news/israel-gaza-hamas-trump-10-04-25
