Fighting rages as Israel’s leaders air wartime divisions
Smoke billows during Israeli bombardment in eastern Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip. Pics/AFP
An Israeli airstrike killed 20 people in central Gaza, mostly women and children, and fighting raged across the north on Sunday as Israel's leaders aired divisions over who should govern Gaza after the war, now in its eighth month.
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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has faced criticism from his own War Cabinet, with his main political rival, Benny Gantz, threatening to leave the government if a plan is not formulated by June 8 that includes an international administration for postwar Gaza.
US national security adviser Jake Sullivan was expected to meet with top Israeli leaders on Sunday to discuss an ambitious US plan for Saudi Arabia to recognise Israel and help the Palestinian Authority to govern Gaza in exchange for a path to eventual statehood.
Israeli army tanks are seen in the central Gaza Strip
Netanyahu, who is opposed to Palestinian statehood, has rejected those proposals, saying Israel will maintain open-ended security control over Gaza and partner with local Palestinians unaffiliated with Hamas or the Western-backed Palestinian Authority. Gantz’s withdrawal would not bring down Netanyahu's coalition government, but it would leave him more reliant on far-right allies who support the “voluntary emigration” of Palestinians from Gaza, full military occupation and the rebuilding of Jewish settlements there.
Ultimatum raises pressure on PM
Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu is under mounting pressure from his own War Cabinet and allies over postwar plans for Gaza. Benny Gantz, a member of the War Cabinet said he would leave the government on June 8 if it did not formulate a new war plan.
Another hostage body found
A day after the bodies of three Israelis held hostage by Hamas from the Gaza Strip, Israeli forces retrieved the body of another hostage from the war-torn region on Saturday, The Times of Israel reported, citing Israel Defence Forces (IDF).
‘All Israeli crossings with Gaza must be opened’
Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said on Friday that all land crossings between Israel and the Gaza Strip must be opened for full, safe, and unhindered access of humanitarian and relief aid into the strip.
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