Biden Pushes Netanyahu for Gaza Cease Fire and Three Phase Plan
Netanyahu Resists Biden Plan to Prevent His Incarceration by Prolonging the War
President Biden is to be commended for his proposed Three Phase Plan to have Israelis and Hamas agree to a permanent cease fire and to negotiate terms of Israeli hostage and Palestinians prisoner release as well as the rebuilding of Gaza. Biden portrayed the Plan as an Israeli proposal, and though Israeli negotiators drafted the plan, Netanyahu disagreed and shot it down within hours after Biden’s announcement. Netanyahu said the Gaza War cannot end until the total destruction of Hamas, both militarily and politically. So, Netanyahu is prepared to have the remaining Israeli hostages remain in Gaza captivity for the duration of his never ending war.
Biden is to be commended for taking the initiative and pushing Netanyahu to accept the plan his own negotiators drafted.
Netanyahu has several concerns: (1) his far right coalition members, including Itamar Ben Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, said they would quit the government and withdraw from Netanyahu’s coalition if Netanyahu accepts the peace plan that Biden announced which would mark the end of this Netanyahu government, (2) Israeli public have continued large demonstrations in Tel Aviv for the hostages to be returned and the war to end, and (3) if Netanyahu’s government falls, he will be subject to prosecution over corruption charges which could put him in jail.
The Israeli Opposition leader, Yair Lapid, issued a strong statement criticizing Ben Gvir and Smotrich and slammed them for making threats which “abandon national security, the hostages, and the residents of the north and the south.” Lapid continued, [“t]his is the worst and most wanton government in the country’s history. As far as they’re concerned, there could be war here forever.” Lapid also said Israel “must do the deal , now … before the hostages die there [in Gaza]” Lapid quotes are from The Times of Israel.
Netanyahu poured more gasoline on the fire saying the Biden announced Israeli drafted proposal was a non-starter and said there can be no permanent Gaza cease fire until Hamas is destroyed.
U.S. negotiators said the Israeli drafted proposal met all of Hamas demands, and Hamas issued some statements saying they welcomed the Israeli drafted proposal.
Opposition Leader Lapid said that if Ben Gvir and Smotrich abandoned Netanyahu’s government, his party would join the Netanyahu coalition to preserve Netanyahu’s majority in the Knesset and his position as Prime Minister.
Lapid then said the following:
The government of Israel cannot ignore President Biden’s consequential speech. There is a deal on the table and it should be made. … I remind Netanyahu that he has a safety net from us for a hostage release deal if Ben Gvir and Smotrich leave the government.
Families of hostages “called for all parties to immediately accept Biden’s proposal to end the nearly 8-month -long war and bring their relatives home.
Gili Roman spoke to the Associated Press saying that his sister, Yarden Roman-Gat was taken hostage and freed during a weeklong ceasefire in November, but his sister-in-law, Carmel, is still being held. He then told the Times of Israel: “This might be the last chance to save lives. Therefore, the current state must be changed.”
But on Monday, Netanyahu worked vigorously to reject Biden’s proposal. According to the Times of Israel:
Israeli officials pushed back Monday on elements of the hostage deal proposal presented by US President Joe Biden over the weekend as an Israeli offer, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisted there were gaps between that proposal and Israel’s stance.
“The claim that we agreed to a ceasefire without our conditions being met is incorrect,” the prime minister reportedly told lawmakers.
Netanyahu said in a Knesset meeting that Israel will not end the war in Gaza until it achieves its three war aims, an Israeli official told the Times of Israel: destroying Hamas’ military and civil governance capabilities, securing the release of all hostages and ensuring that Gaza no longer poses a threat to Israel.
“The proposal that Biden presented is incomplete”… and there are “gaps” between the Israeli version and Biden’s recounting of it. …
Netanyahu said that Israel can stop the war for six weeks, but not end it permanently. “Iran and all of our enemies are watching to see if we capitulate”
National Security Council spokesperson John Kirby said there are no gaps. Kirby
noted that Netanyahu’s foreign policy advisor had confirmed to the Times of London … that the offer detailed by Biden was indeed an Israeli proposal.
Apparently, the Biden proposal was shown to the Israeli War Cabinet but not the National Security cabinet which includes Ben Givir and Smotrich.
Did Netanyahu double cross Biden by telling him Israel approved but neglecting to tell Biden he only obtained the War Cabinet approval which did not include the far-right Ben Givir and Smotrich?
Hamas said it views Biden’s address “positively and would negotiate in good faith to secure a permanent ceasefire and the permanent withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza.” But there is part of the rub as Netanyahu has not spoken of a permanent withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza, and Netanyahu still has not stated any plan for the governance and administration of Gaza at the end of the war. Benny Glantz, a member of the War Cabinet stated that he gave Netanyahu until June 8 to propose his plan for the future administration and governance of Gaza.
In the absence of any Israeli plan for control and administration of Gaza at the end of the war, the parties are talking across each other without developing an agreement. Hamas and Israel are still jockeying for position.
Meanwhile the hostages are held captive with no movement for their release. Netanyahu has given little priority to obtaining release of the Israeli hostages still held by Hamas. If he did, he would agree to the six week ceasefire and hostage and Palestinian prisoner exchange, but Netanyahu seems most concerned about prolonging the war to stay in power and avoid his prosecution for corruption.
What should Biden do if he wants to move the peace and hostage talks to a mutually agreeable solution? In light of Netanyahu’s unreliability in negotiations and the Hamas’ desire to retain power or some semblance of power, Biden needs to do what he always prefers to avoid: apply pressure and leverage on both Netanyahu and Hamas and its leaders.
As to Netanyahu, Biden has serious leverage by restricting or delaying resupply of armaments, but he should apply that pressure quietly and not in a public display. As to Hamas, Biden can apply pressure through Qatar and Egypt on Hamas. Egypt wants to rid itself of the threat of Palestinians coming into Egypt, and Qatar wants to prove its agility to be an effective broker and gain world admiration for its negotiating ability.
But unless Biden puts heavy pressure on Netanyahu, it will be more of the same back and forth and denial. The Israeli hostages have suffered in their incarceration, and some relatives fear they will be dead if not released. Netanyahu does not see them as a real priority, so Biden needs to let Netanyahu know that the U.S. views release of the hostages as a high priority, so efforts need to focus on that six-week ceasefire and release of all of the hostages and release of a large number of Palestinian prisoners. The hostages should be the number one priority, and Biden needs to use his skill to make it so.
