Israel’s Minister of National Security, Itamar Ben-Gvir, and two other Cabinet members from the right-wing party Otzma Yehudit have resigned, as announced, from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government in protest of the Gaza deal.
The party stated on Sunday that the “rash approval of an agreement with the Hamas terrorist organization, which involves the release of hundreds of murderers with the blood of men, women, and children on their hands – some to Jerusalem, Judea, and Samaria – constitutes a shameful capitulation.” The deal, the party claimed, “nullifies the hard-won achievements of the IDF in this war, includes the withdrawal of troops from Gaza, and ends the fighting in a way that capitulates to Hamas.”
The implementation of the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip had been delayed, with the planned start set for Sunday at 8:30 a.m. local time (7:30 a.m. CET). Israel, however, accused Hamas of not providing the list of the three prisoners to be released on Sunday, as agreed upon. Meanwhile, Israeli media reported that the list had been transmitted, but there was no official confirmation yet.