Netanyahu accused of 'failing miserably' as war cabinet members press for Israel elections

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's colleague in his cabinet has accused him of "failing miserably" as the country grapples with domestic, geo-economic and geopolitical consequences of war in Gaza amid relentless human rights violations in the blockaded Palestinian enclave.

Knesset member Gadi Eisenkot, an observer in Israel's war cabinet and a former military chief, said Netanyahu has failed miserably on security and economy fronts and that there must be elections before the end of this year.

The latest note of dissidence comes as Israel took control of the crucialEgypt-Gaza corridor that may potentially choke the limited aid supply route to the strip. Besides, Israeli attack on a Rafah camp— that killed about 45 civilians— have already led to global outcry against Israeli wartime heavy-handedness with an unprecedented humanitarian toll in the region.

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Eisenkot's youngest son was killed in combat in Gaza Strip last year in December. He added that Netanyahu was misleading citizens with slogans of "total victory" against Hamas and choosing not to be realistic about the complexity of the war in Gaza that began last year on October 7 when Hamas militants stormed into southern Israel and killed about 1200 people and took more than 250 people hostage.

"Anyone who says that we will disband a few battalions in Rafah and then return the hostages is sowing a false illusion," he said. "It will take three to five years to stabilise [Gaza] and then many more years to build an alternative to Hamas."

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He said Netanyahu had failed to meet his top 2022 campaign promises, including stopping Iran's nuclear programme, formalising diplomatic ties with Saudi Arabia and strengthening the economy.

Israel under Netanyahu's premiership has vowed to destroy Hamas but this stated goal has repeatedly come under doubt due to complexities of war posed by Hamas being embedded amongst a dense population of civilians in Gaza.

Netanyahu's Likud Party hits back at dissidents in war cabinet

After Eisenkot's comment, the Likud Party said that Prime Minister Netanyahu's war cabinet colleagues such as Eisenkot and Benny Gantz — PM Netanyahu's main challenger — were looking for excuses to quit the coalition at the height of the war.

"Instead of pursuing victory, they are engaging in petty politics," Likud said.

This is the latest spat in the coalition that continues to raise questions about how long Israel's wartime government could survive.

More than 36,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel's assault on Gaza, the blockaded enclave's health ministry said, with thousands more trapped under rubble.

(With inputs from agencies)