Prioritizing the release of prisoners in Gaza or continuing to fight against critics whom Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu calls “eternal war” is an increasingly divided issue of Israel.
The Israeli government is focusing on the idea of a perfect victory over Hamas in Gaza, and appears to have chosen the latter.
And that’s just increasing the criticism Netanyahu has received since October 2023. First, it is to provide a clear vision of what his government did not stop the attack on October 7th, and not end the 19-month war, or what Gaza’s “next day” will look like.
Netanyahu’s decision in March was to unilaterally end the ceasefire instead of continuing an agreement to bring the remaining prisoners home, which widened rifts within Israeli society.
Over the past few weeks, a wave of open letter writing from within military forces has emerged in protest of government priorities.
Frustration has also gained traction with the masses. Earlier this month, thousands of Israelis gathered outside the Tel Aviv Ministry of Defense to protest Netanyahu’s decision to summon another 60,000 reserves as part of an escalation against the bombed Palestinian enclave.
In mid-April, current and former members of the Air Force, considered one of Israeli elite units, also issued a letter claiming that the war “inadequate” Netanyahu’s “political and personal interests.”
Stimulated by the Air Force, similar protests came from members of the Navy, elite forces within the military, and Mossad, Israel’s Foreign Security Agency.
Political and personal interests
Netanyahu accused that he was manipulating the war for his own personal purposes before the destruction of the ceasefire.
In his critic’s mind, the longer the war continues, the more Netanyahu feels that he can protect himself from many threats to his position and freedom.
In addition to facing numerous corruption trials dating back to 2019, he is faced with a call to investigate the government’s political failures prior to the attack on October 7th.
Netanyahu also faces accusations that members of his office are allegedly making payments from Qatar. The Gulf state previously rejected the claim as a “smear campaign” aimed at hampering efforts to mediate the end of the conflict.
With the continued war, Netanyahu could distract them from those issues, revealing that it appears to include the ethnic cleansing of Gaza, while maintaining a coalition with far-right parties that revealed the end of the war without a complete victory.
And there are questions about whether Netanyahu’s announcement of further escalations in Gaza will include occupation of the territory and the movement of its population.
“I don’t know if they’ll be able to occupy the territory,” Global Guardian, Colonel Seth Kulmurich, a former US Special Forces commander and international security company commander, told Al Jazeera.
“It’s also competing with the growth trends. [domestic] toxicity. When soldiers don’t go home or go, it intends to tear the structure of Israeli society. It is played at the dinner table. ”
I’m at home
Israeli media reports suggest that some of its toxicity is unfolding in the number of reserves who do not appear simply because of obligation.
The majority of these refusal services are considered to be “gray refusals.” In other words, the reserves without ideological disputes to mass murders in Gaza are rather exhausted from repeated tours, leaving their families and jobs to support a clear, never-ending war.
The official number of reserves who refuse their obligations is unknown. However, in mid-March, the Israeli national broadcaster, Kang, executed a report challenging the official figures. This claims that over 80% of people called for work were present, suggesting that the actual figure is close to 60%.
“There is a steady increase in denials among reserves,” said a spokesman for a new profile of an organization that supports those who refuse to enlist. “However, in response to certain changes in Israeli government policies, sharp spikes are common in response to certain changes in Israeli government policies, such as violations of official statements that show that the main objective of the military campaign is no longer the revival of hostages, but rather the occupation of Gaza and its cleanup of its Ithenians, but the “destroy of Hamas.” ”
Nor is it increasing public dissatisfaction with the ultra-religious Haredi community, where the Supreme Court last June saw an eight-year exemption from military service as illegal.
Despite the shortage of reservists reporting duties and other people having repeated deployments, in April the Supreme Court requested an explanation from Netanyahu, who relies on Haredi’s support to maintain his coalition as to why the ruling was not fully implemented or enforced.
During the war, Netanyahu’s escalations are often resisted by the prisoners’ families and their allies, but have been cheered and encouraged by his allies.
The obvious conflict between the welfare of the prisoners and the “complete victory” promised by Netanyahu is roughly the same length as the conflict itself, with each moment of division appearing to reinforce the Prime Minister’s position through critical support of the hyper-ecological elements of his cabinet.
Netanyahu’s position led to conflict with politicians, including his own former defense minister. Although Gallant was not opposed to the war in principle, his active support for Netanyahu ultimately led to him joining Netanyahu in the face of an arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court for war crimes.
The gap over priorities means that the courtesy between the government and prisoner of war families is increasingly coming out of the window, with Netanyahu generally avoiding meeting their loved ones and families who are still being taken prisoner in Gaza, while far-right politicians avoid yelling out matches with them during meetings in Congress.
The division within the Israeli Association was nothing new, Chatham House professor Yossi Mekelberg told Al Jazeera.
“Now we have a situation where people are working everywhere for up to 400 days in the military. [as reservists]others have refused to serve at all and are exploiting their political power within the coalition to do so,” Mekelberg added.
“Other places, there are ministers who are talking about the extreme right-hand ministers ‘sacrifices’ hostages for military interest,” Mekelberg said he views many as rebutting many of the nation and many principles of Jewish faith.
“There is such toxicity in public discourse,” Mekelberg continued. “We see toxicity against those who criticize war or prime ministers, secular and religious divisions, and even splitting within religious movements.”
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