Israeli Defense Minister Resigns in Protest Against Netanyahu and Gaza Developments

Avigdor Lieberman, the Israeli Defense Minister, announced his resignation on Wednesday, November 14, during a meeting of his party faction, "Israel, Our Home," in the Israeli parliament. He declared the end of his party's alliance with Netanyahu's government, citing his protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu regarding the management of military operations in recent days against armed Palestinian organizations in Gaza. Lieberman stated that "negligence" and "weakness" allowed Hamas and other armed Palestinian groups to worsen the security situation in southern Israel, and under these circumstances, the government should not have agreed to an unwritten ceasefire with these groups. He believes that Israel's "deterrent capability" has been harmed by this manner of conducting military operations and the ceasefire agreement, which needs to be rebuilt. Lieberman added that Netanyahu's government has only damaged Israel's deterrent power for the sake of "calm for a short period." This week, after a special Israeli commando unit was sent to Gaza for a secret operation but partially failed to strike key Hamas military commanders, Palestinian organizations responded by firing over 460 rockets into Israel on Monday and Tuesday, marking the heaviest Israeli response to attacks on Gaza. However, the Israeli government showed signs of agreeing to a ceasefire on Tuesday evening, although it did not officially announce its clear position. Meanwhile, Netanyahu faced severe criticism from opposition leaders, including former Prime Minister and Defense Minister Ehud Barak, former Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, and opposition party leader Yair Lapid. Additionally, some Israelis who had been in shelters during the military crisis protested on Tuesday evening, criticizing the government's agreement to the unwritten ceasefire. Hamas and its supporters in Gaza celebrated the ceasefire that was established at midnight on Tuesday. However, about two hours before Lieberman's resignation, Netanyahu stated at a ceremony in the south of the country that "his decisions were due to issues he cannot share with the public because important and confidential national matters should not be disclosed." Analysts in Israeli media had emphasized hours before Lieberman's resignation that the new political situation might lead Netanyahu to announce early parliamentary elections, which he had previously suggested, but on the other hand, Netanyahu might also take over the Defense Ministry position himself until the end of his government, similar to the Foreign Ministry. In this context, Naftali Bennett, leader of the "Jewish Home" party, another right-wing political organization allied with Netanyahu's government, claimed that he considers taking the Defense Ministry position as his "right." Nevertheless, speculation in the media suggests that the Defense Ministry position may be handed over to reserve General Yoav Galant, who is currently the Minister of Housing. The secret agreement between Avigdor Lieberman and Benjamin Netanyahu for his appointment as Defense Minister two and a half years ago, which led to the surprising dismissal of General Moshe Ya'alon from this position, greatly displeased General Ya'alon, who subsequently left the Likud party and became one of Netanyahu's most serious critics. Lieberman has held positions such as Foreign Minister in many previous Israeli governments, but this was the first time he reached the Defense Ministry. The 60-year-old Lieberman, born in the former Soviet republics and a native Russian speaker, has failed to achieve his goal of becoming Prime Minister. He played a significant role in bringing Israel closer to Russia and in the agreements made three years ago regarding multiple Israeli military attacks in Syria targeting what were called "Iranian goals and their allies."