During a briefing with the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant criticized Prime Minister Netanyahu's statements about achieving "total victory" in Gaza. According to those present, Gallant called these claims "nonsense and drum-beating." He also discussed the possibility of war in Lebanon, stating that conditions today are opposite to what they were at the beginning of the war.
MK Tali Gottlieb protested: "How dare you speak like that about the Prime Minister?" Gallant replied: "In security matters, I know what I'm talking about."
The meeting was later interrupted after Gottlieb repeatedly disrupted Gallant's remarks. Upon leaving, Gallant said: "Shameful, this has never happened in the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee."
Gottlieb later stated that Netanyahu should fire Gallant: "Prime Minister, if you don't act accordingly, you won't be able to blame anyone else."
Gallant emphasized the need to achieve operational goals while also creating conditions to return the hostages. He suggested that the hostage deal is being delayed "partly because of Israel" and claimed that even if Israel withdraws from the Philadelphi Corridor for two months, "nothing will happen."
"We're at a crossroads," Gallant said. "There's a possibility of a deal that will bring arrangement in the north and south, and another possibility is escalation to war. I and the defense establishment support the first option, we'll know how to live with the price."
During the meeting, Gallant also stressed the need to advance the law extending regular service without connecting it to any other law, to meet operational needs and ease the burden on reserve soldiers.
Committee Chairman MK Yuli Edelstein emphasized the need for political decision-making at this critical stage: "We see how multi-faceted our struggle really is. If something changes, there are heavy implications one way or another, so we'd be very happy to hear from you, sir, both the update on the reality as you see it, and of course we'll allow Knesset members to raise questions, comments, whatever is customary and familiar to you."
Gallant responded by highlighting recent operational achievements and their impact on regional power projection and progress towards war goals. He also addressed the current state of alertness and readiness in face of threats from Tehran and Beirut.
The Prime Minister's Office later released a statement: "When Gallant adopts the anti-Israeli narrative, he harms the chances of reaching a deal to release the hostages. It would have been appropriate for him to attack Sinwar, who refuses to send a delegation to negotiations, and who was and remains the only obstacle to a hostage deal. Israel has only one option: to achieve total victory, which means eliminating Hamas's military and governmental capabilities, and freeing our hostages - and this victory will be achieved. This is the clear directive of Prime Minister Netanyahu and the Cabinet, and it is binding on everyone - including Gallant."
* Walla News contributed to this report.