Amid infighting in Israel, can Netanyahu carry on with his war policy in Gaza?

There is another immediate cause for more significant concern against the current government and its policies in the West Bank. There, the army is fighting another mini-war against the Israelis who live in various settlements in the West Bank for attacking and killing the Palestinians. The head of Shin-Bet (the internal intelligence of Israel) has called these attacks Jewish terrorism in the West Bank and asked for immediate intervention of the Prime Minister against his coalition partners. This is an issue that Netanyahu doesn’t want to acknowledge or address because he fears the government’s fall over it. His coalition partners, like the member of parliament Itamar Ben-Gvir, the current Minister of National Security, keep provoking people to defy the army and the police. He and some other ultra-religious and nationalist leaders speak without any qualms against the two-state solution or unilaterally changing the status quo in Jerusalem over religious places.

These developments are internal, yet far more destabilising for Israel’s national security and its war management in Gaza. In the middle of such domestic chaos came the news of the dead bodies of the hostages in Gaza who were executed by Hamas just before the arrival of the Israeli army. The six hostages survived their captivity for almost 11 months in the tunnels of Gaza and were to be freed if there was a hostage deal in June or July. The news of their deaths moved lakhs of Israelis, who came out in massive protests, around 3,00,000 people in Tel Aviv and 2,00,000 in other cities, against the government this weekend. Israel’s largest labour union, Histadrut, called for a general national strike, which shut down almost all sectors of the economy and Israel’s only international airport for a day. Histadrut is one of the influential bodies representing a union of close to 1,00,000 government workers (including the diplomats and ambassadors stationed abroad) in Israel. It acted against Netanyahu when he wanted to bring in judicial reforms that were much against the spirit of democracy and institutional checks and balances in March last year. Interestingly, the previous national shutdown occurred after Yoav Gallant, the defence minister, publicly opposed the Prime Minister for dividing the country and the army.

The national strike was only for a day, and the court ordered the union not to extend such a shutdown. Netanyahu would not have to worry much about it anymore. However, the Forum of Hostage Families can now get thousands of people on the streets as the public anger against Netanyahu has been at an all-time high since October 7. He seems more anxious about the growing criticism of his war policy by the army and particularly the defence minister, Yoav Gallant. Can he carry on with his maximalist war policy in Gaza? If the military disobeys, can he afford to sack the defence minister (last time, he tried, but he had to withdraw the sacking order of Yoav Gallant because the people supported him)?

Looking at it from the outside, Israel is at war with itself in the middle of the ongoing war with Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran. Israelis have long grown complacent about political fights between the left and right or religious and secular nationalists. They have been disenchanted with political leadership after Yitzhak Rabin or Shimon Peres as they found no one with a vision for a better future for themselves or a solution to the conflict with Palestinians. The army remains the last bastion of unity and hope for the Israelis. Can the army take over power in Israel for some time? That is not an unusual fate in the countries living in the Middle East. Israel fancied itself as a Western, developed, democratic and modern state, and more or less that ambition was fulfilled. Still, now, the country resembles its regional neighbours with shaky and corrupt leadership, constant street fights and violent protests, erosion of law and order, religious extremism, and perpetual political instability. Israel has strong allies when it comes to its war with others, but it is more exposed and vulnerable with itself.

The writer is professor and director, Centre for Israel Studies, Jindal School of International Affairs, O P Jindal Global University, Sonipat