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Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich said he has “lost faith” that Benjamin Netanyahu can achieve a “decisive victory” in Gaza, days after the country’s security cabinet agreed to expand the military offensive in the shattered enclave.
Smotrich, an ultranationalist and key member of the governing coalition, accused Netanyahu of conducting an “about-face” after having promised this time to “go all the way”, and criticised the premier for leaving open the possibility of a ceasefire-for-hostage deal with Palestinian militant group Hamas, in a blistering three-minute video on Saturday.
Smotrich said he had remained in government “as long as I believed we were driving for decisive victory”, but that he had now “lost faith that the prime minister can and wishes to lead the [Israeli military] there.”
The veteran premier has come under pressure from his far-right allies, including Smotrich and national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, for more hardline policies throughout the Gaza war. While the statements on Sunday were the most expansive to date by the finance minister, he did not explicitly threaten to resign or bring down Netanyahu’s government.
While Smotrich has attempted to outflank Netanyahu from the right, the premier’s decision to expand the offensive against Hamas in Gaza has been heavily criticised as reckless both at home and abroad.
Netanyahu’s security cabinet ordered the Israeli military to begin preparations to “take control of Gaza City” after a marathon session that lasted into Friday morning. The cabinet suggested that civilians sheltering in what was once the enclave’s largest population centre would be forced to evacuate.
Yet the expanded military offensive could be delayed until early October to allow time to call up reserves, forcibly evacuate hundreds of thousands of Palestinians, and create the required humanitarian aid infrastructure.
Smotrich, who took part in the deliberations, said the plan amounted to “launching a military operation that is not aimed at resolving the issue, but rather at putting pressure on Hamas to agree to a partial hostage deal”.
‘‘That’s not how you win a war,” Smotrich added, highlighting an aggressive alternative plan — which he did not describe in detail — he claimed would lead to “a lightning-fast military victory”.
Smotrich and his far-right allies have publicly supported the full reoccupation of the entire Gaza Strip, the “voluntary emigration” of the territory’s 2mn people to undefined foreign countries, and the re-establishment of Israeli settlements across the enclave.
Zvi Sukkot, a parliamentarian from Smotrich’s Religious Zionism party, told Israel’s army radio on Sunday morning that the party could reconsider its membership in Netanyahu’s government and push for early elections.
“I don’t see any point being partner to something that will ultimately send soldiers [into battle] without first knowing what the end result will be,” Sukkot said.
Netanyahu’s governing coalition consists of the premier’s Likud party, two far-right parties, and two ultra-Orthodox factions, which have already suspended their involvement in government due to differences over conscription.
Despite the coalition troubles, political analysts remain sceptical that snap elections are likely in the coming months. The governing coalition is trailing the opposition in the polls, with Religious Zionism in danger of not passing the electoral threshold for entry into the next parliament. Elections are not formally meant to be held until the autumn of 2026.
The country’s military chiefs opposed Netanyahu’s plan due to fears that it would overstretch an already exhausted fighting force after 22 months of war and endanger the remaining 50 Israeli hostages held by Hamas, 20 of whom are still believed to be alive.
Opposition leaders emphasised the toll that expanding the war would have on Israel’s international standing, as well as the cost for the Israeli taxpayer.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid warned on Sunday that ‘‘delusions of conquering the strip’’ would result in new taxes, cuts in social welfare spending and higher debt service.
“Instead of improving education for Israel’s children — we will pay for the education of Gaza’s children,’’ Lapid said on X.
Nine western states — including the UK, Germany and France — rejected the Israeli security cabinet’s decision in a joint statement with the EU on Saturday, warning that it risked aggravating the “catastrophic humanitarian situation” in Gaza and endangering the Israeli hostages, and could violate international law.
