Netanyahu, Gallant locked together in divided government

Politics prevent the PM from firing defence minister, who wants a Gaza ceasefire

A showdown between Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant over the Gaza war is the latest in a series of confrontations that have tested the notion of Cabinet unity to breaking point over the past 18 months.

Mr Netanyahu said on Sept 2 that the two could work together "as long as there is trust", but that all ministers were beholden to Cabinet decisions.

"And that is the main thing that is now being tested," he told a press conference.

He dismissed calls by Mr Gallant and others in the security establishment to accept a withdrawal of Israeli troops from the southern border area of the Gaza Strip as the price of a ceasefire deal with militant group Hamas.

Arguments have broken out repeatedly between Mr Netanyahu and Mr Gallant, who rose to the rank of general during a 35-year military career that he began in a naval commando unit.

While hawkish on security matters, including Hamas, he has been openly scornful of Mr Netanyahu's often repeated aim of "total victory" in Gaza, which he has dismissed as "nonsense".

But the complex geometry of Israeli politics since the Gaza war began has kept the two locked together, preventing Mr Netanyahu from firing Mr Gallant and stopping the defence minister from walking out.

In 2023, during protests against a drive by Mr Netanyahu to curb the Supreme Court's powers, Mr Gallant broke ranks and spoke out against a plan that he said was causing such deep social divisions it endangered national security.