From the Liveblog of
Sunday, February 18, 2024
Gantz: No peace via one-sided moves, Rafah invasion by Ramadan if hostages not home
Sam Sokol is the Times of Israel's political correspondent. He was previously a reporter for the Jerusalem Post, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Haaretz. He is the author of "Putin’s Hybrid War and the Jews"
While Israel recognizes that victory will come through cooperation with US President Joe Biden and other international leaders, it also rejects “one-sided actions,” Minister Benny Gantz declares following the cabinet’s unanimous approval of a declaration rejecting pressure to push Palestinian statehood.
Gantz also threatens that Israel will invade Rafah if hostages are not freed in the next several weeks.
“When we say ‘Together we will win’ – we mean also together with our American partners – Republicans and Democrats alike,” Gantz tells a gathering of American Jewish leaders in Jerusalem.
“This victory goes hand in hand with our will to expand the circle of peace and form a united regional axis facing Iran. For that reason, the normalization process with Saudi Arabia is an important endeavor we must pursue – and I am personally working toward it,” he states.
But he adds that “after October 7, the pathway to regional stability and peace is not through one-sided actions like recognition of a Palestinian state.”
“It is through facilitating long-term processes that will consolidate a regional architecture facing the Iranian axis of terror, and by advancing international arrangements that will improve the lives of people throughout the region and promote stability and peace,” he says.
He says an invasion of Rafah will occur in coordination with “our American and Egyptian partners to minimize civilian casualties,” but indicates the offensive can be avoided if the hostages are freed.
“The world must know, and Hamas leaders must know – if by Ramadan our hostages are not home, the fighting will be extended to the Rafah area,” Gantz says, setting a deadline around March 10.
Earlier, the cabinet approved a statement rejecting “international diktats” seeking to push Palestinian statehood, which it described as a “massive, unprecedented prize for terror” that would prevent any future peace deal.
The decision reflected statements made by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at a press conference last night, in the wake of a Washington Post report that said the US and several Arab partners were preparing a detailed plan for a comprehensive peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians that includes a “firm timeline” for a Palestinian state.
