ALBAWABA - Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has expressed his displeasure with the present ceasefire arrangement, saying that Israel is likely to restart military operations in Gaza when the first phase is over.
Smotrich called the truce and prisoner swap agreement "catastrophic and dangerous for Israeli security" in an interview with The Jerusalem Post. He said that Israel will resume military activity and would not extend the ceasefire beyond the first phase, which is scheduled to conclude in early March.
Smotrich said that he decided to remain in Netanyahu's administration after receiving assurances that U.S. President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are "committed to eliminating Hamas as a governing force in Gaza."
He said that Israel is being discreetly urged to eradicate Hamas by "regional allies in the moderate axis." He did not, however, identify the nations that participated in these talks.
Netanyahu has been under intense pressure from Smotrich to renounce the ceasefire agreement's second phase and promptly start military operations after the conclusion of the first. In the past, if military activity did not continue, he threatened to leave the administration.
The truce, which went into effect on January 19, is divided into three 42-day stages. The first stage entails talks to specify the terms for carrying out the second and third stages, which are mediated by Qatar and Egypt with support from the United States.
The argument over whether Netanyahu's administration should implement the ceasefire deal or return to military operations in Gaza is intensifying due to mounting pressure from right-wing elements.
