Netanyahu Consults Staff Over Fears of Mass Israeli Protests Demanding Gaza Cease-fire After Deaths of Six Hostages - Israel News - Haaretz.com
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is "worried" about the potential for a large spike in protests, according to senior Israeli officials close to him.
"He fears a repeat of 'Gallant night,'" one official told Haaretz, referring to a turning point in the protest against the judicial overhaul in March last year after tens of thousands of protesters took to the streets following Netanyahu's firing of Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for warning against the security dangers of the move.
"This is a situation where it will be clear that it is impossible to continue in the same way as before," the senior official said. Netanyahu, on the other hand, does not seem to have decided on the policy shift or the cabinet's choice not to negotiate Israeli presence along the Philadelphi Route.
Netanyahu held limited consultations with his staff on Sunday, and diplomatic sources predict that Netanyahu will base his choices on the ferocity of the protests in the coming days.
Due to the Sunday night cabinet meeting, Netanyahu also discussed the most recent developments with Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.
According to diplomatic sources, Netanyahu will monitor the public sentiment in the next days to assess the developments, and will try to avoid changes in the meantime. "He will bide his time as long as he can," said a source close to him.
Protesters calling for a hostage release deal in Jerusalem on Sunday.Credit: Olivier Fitoussi
A senior Likud minister reinforced the officials' remarks. "It's unpleasant to admit, but Netanyahu will push for a deal only when the streets are burning," the minister said.
"Right now, he fears Ben-Gvir and Smotrich more than he fears the families of the hostages," the minister added.
A Likud official claimed that Sara Netanyahu is also very afraid of widespread public riots, and especially of demonstrations in front of her home and outside the Prime Minister's Office.
Protesters rally outside the Defence Ministry against the government and to show support for the hostages, in Tel Aviv, Sunday.Credit: Florion Goga/Reuters
During the months when Netanyahu's government tried to enact its judicial overhaul, the prime minister feared a loss of control in the streets and large and prolonged demonstrations.
Throughout the weeks during which days of disruption were held, Netanyahu tried to portray them as illegitimate and to claim that the demonstrators were acting violently.
Last month, Netanyahu attacked Gallant, claiming he "hears the heroes with the drums, the total victory and the chatter, the courage I did not see when it comes to meetings."
Netanyahu accused Gallant of adopting the Hamas narrative and said that "it was proper for him to attack Sinwar who refuses to send a delegation to negotiations, and who was and remains the only obstacle to the hostage deal."