Smotrich says his party will oppose the proposed hostage deal plan amid reports of a breakthrough in talks in Qatar.
By David Rosenberg, World Israel News
A senior Israeli government minister castigated the emerging hostage deal in Qatar, threatening to oppose ratification of the agreement if it is brought to a vote.
On Monday, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, chairman of the Religious Zionist Party, took to X/Twitter to condemn the latest ceasefire proposal now under consideration in talks in Doha, Qatar.
Smotrich lambasted the deal, which would be implemented over three phases, as a “catastrophe” for Israel’s security.
“The emerging deal is a catastrophe for the national security of the State of Israel,” Smotrich wrote. “We will not be part of a surrender deal that would include releasing arch-terrorists, ending the war, and erasing the achievements that cost us so much.”
Smotrich also claimed the proposed agreement would “abandon many hostages,” a reference to the plans to release just 34 of the remaining 98 Israeli hostages during the first phase of a potential ceasefire, leaving the fate of the remaining hostages uncertain and linked to Hamas’s compliance with the truce.
“This is the time to continue with all our might, to occupy and cleanse the entire [Gaza] Strip, to finally take control of humanitarian aid from Hamas, and to open the gates of hell on Gaza until Hamas surrenders completely and all the hostages are returned.”
According to multiple Hebrew reports this week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has sought to win Smotrich’s support – or at the very least his acquiescence – for a deal with Hamas, reportedly warning Smotrich that outright opposition to a deal would risk the ire of the incoming Trump administration and lessen the likelihood the new president would support Israeli plans to apply sovereignty in Judea and Samaria.
An Israeli official told Walla Sunday that Netanyahu fears National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir (Otzma Yehudit) will bolt the coalition if the deal currently under consideration is ratified.
Netanyahu, according to the official, has made overtures to Smotrich to gauge his willingness to at least remain in the government in such a scenario, even if Smotrich and the Religious Zionist Party vote against the ceasefire deal.