Explained: Israel forms emergency 'war cabinet'. What is it? What will it do?

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former defence chief and centrist opposition party leader Benny Gantz have agreed to form an emergency government, a joint statementsaid on Wednesday (Oct 11).

The statement read, "Following a meeting... held today, the two agreed on establishing an emergency government and war cabinet."

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"Israel before anything else," Gantz wrote in a social media post while the National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir wrote that he "welcomes the unity, now we must win".

Israel is at war as it faces the deadliest attack since its creation in 1948. In the first week of October, more than 1,500 Hamas militants stormed through the Gaza security barrier in the first weekend of October in their coordinated land, air and sea attack on the Jewish Sabbath.

Israel's 'war cabinet'

In general, a war cabinet is a committee formed by a government in a time of war. The aim of such special cabinets is to efficiently and effectively conduct that war.

It is quite common for a war cabinet to have the prime minister/president of the nation and senior military officers as a war cabinet is usually a subset of the full executive cabinet of ministers. It also has opposition politicians as members.

Israel's three-member "war cabinet" would include Netanyahu, Gantz and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant. The statement said that Gadi Eisenkot, who is also a former army chief from Gantz's party, and Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer will serve as observers.

A seat for the opposition leader Yair Lapid would be "reserved" in the war cabinet, but he has not joined his former ally, Gantz, the statement added.

After the announcement, Justice Minister Yariv Levin said the agreement "is the right and necessary thing to do — from here, we work together".

Economy Minister Nir Barkat wrote: "The State of Israel has a unity government. At a time like this, we must join forces, give support to IDF soldiers and work as one until there is a complete victory of the State of Israel over its enemy."

Any impact on parties?

The unity among political parties, which are normally deeply hostile to one another, shows the scale of the crisis that has unfolded across Israel, with an uncertain future.

But the statement said that the overall, five members of Gantz's National Unity party would become ministers without portfolio.

It also noted appointments for senior positions would be automatically extended during the war, with Israeli central bank governor Amir Yaron due to complete his five-year tenure at the end of the year.

What will the 'war cabinet' do?

Amid the escalating situation and Israel's raging fighting against Hamas militants, the emergency government will get broader national consensus to military action.

The cabinet includes two strong people who are experts when it comes to military strategies. Gantz and Eisenkot are former Israeli military chiefs of staff.

It has been agreed that no legislation in Knesset or government resolutions will be advanced during the war if they are not related to the management of the war.

Watch:Is Israel preparing for a multi-front war?

Judicial overhaul frozen

Israel has agreed also to freeze the government's judicial overhaul, which had triggered mass street protests since the start of the year, said to be the biggest in the country's history.

Since the start of the year, huge weekly protests have been held by people who oppose the government's reform plans. Tens of thousands of people stormed the streets in towns and cities across the country as the scale of the protests grew gradually.

In July, Israel's parliament passed the first part to overhaul the country's judiciary system. It is controversial as the legislation abolishes the "reasonableness doctrine," which the Supreme Court has employed to evaluate government policies.

The war has given a break to all the government's plans.

History of cabinet war rooms

The concept of war cabinets, or war rooms, is old. It gained prominence during the World War II. One of the most famous in that period was British prime minister WinstonChurchill's War Cabinet.

Let's dive into its history: Plans were drafted as early as the 1920s to evacuate the prime minister, cabinet, and key personnel from London; however, concerns about the speed of the evacuation led to a search for an emergency shelter in central London. Not just evacuation, there were also concerns over the idea that Londoners would feel abandoned if the government and prime minister were in a safe place, away from the city.

Hence, the New Public Offices building was selected in June 1938, which was near Parliament, with a strong steel frame and a large basement.

History books have mentioned that the War Cabinet met in the basement during air attacks, and it also served as the location of a military information centre with a "Map Room" in its centre. This was where important data for Prime Minister Churchill, the armed forces, and King George VI was gathered. One week before Britain declared war on Germany, on August 27, 1939, the Cabinet War Rooms were completely operational.

(With inputs from agencies)

Disclaimer: WION takes utmost care to accurately and responsibly report ongoing developments on the Israel-Palestine conflict after the Hamas attacks. However, we cannot independently verify the authenticity of all statements, photos and videos.

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