An Israeli security official revealed early Saturday that the Israeli war government is on the verge of collapse, and Prime Minister Netanyahu is hesitating in his decisions and wasting time.

The British newspaper The Times said in an article that the Israeli war cabinet, which has been managing the military side of the war in Gaza since its fifth day, is now in its final stages, noting that the government was formed hastily by bitter political opponents in the days following the operation “Al-Aqsa Flood” on October 7.

The newspaper confirmed that throughout the past three and a half months, the war government remained cohesive despite the personal and ideological differences among its members, attributing the reason for this to the “severe emergency” that Israel was facing.

The Times explained that questions about the next stages of the war are now being asked and are causing this government to be torn apart, which are “whether Israel should continue the large-scale campaign against Hamas or choose a ceasefire that would allow the release of 136 prisoners still being held in Gaza, and who... "Should he be responsible for Gaza in the end? The day after the war."

According to the newspaper, Gadi Eisenkot, former Israeli chief of staff and member of the military cabinet, accused Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of not telling the truth about military targets in Gaza, which reveals tensions in the leadership.

The article explained, “On paper, there are three full members of the war government: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Galant, and Benny Gantz, the former defense minister and current leader of the centrist National Unity Party.”

There are two members of the government who act as “observers”: “Strategic Affairs Minister Ron Dermer, personally appointed by Netanyahu, and Eisenkot, who represents Gantz, in addition to the unofficial sixth member, Aryeh Deri, the leader of the ultra-religious Shas party, who attends most of the meetings.” . These six politicians are running the war on the Gaza Strip.

The Times noted that Netanyahu ostensibly heads a war government, but by all accounts, his main role is to try to postpone key decisions such as when a ground attack will be launched in Gaza, whether a preemptive attack will be launched against Hezbollah in Lebanon, and whether Will the first prisoner release agreement be accepted in November? What to do about a future swap deal.

“Netanyahu is hesitating, wasting valuable time,” says one knowledgeable security official in the cabinet. “His main fear is deciding whether to scale back the war — which would make the far-right parties in his government withdraw from the coalition and force early elections.”

The newspaper added that Gantz, who has been a political competitor to Netanyahu over the past five years, and according to opinion polls, would win the elections if they were held today. Early in the war, he maintained his position against directing a pre-emptive strike against Hezbollah, and was a supporter of the first prisoner exchange agreement, and is believed Israel must give priority to reaching an agreement to release the remaining prisoners, and agree, if necessary, to a ceasefire with Hamas.

It was Gantz who urged Netanyahu to form a war government to reduce the influence of the far right and unify Israel. But his aides warn that he is running out of patience, and when he feels he can no longer influence the decision-making process, he will return to the opposition and call for elections.

The article continued, "Gallant is the most hardline in the government, as he unsuccessfully pushed for a strike on Hezbollah and opposed prisoner exchange agreements. He is now the least able to hide his disdain for Netanyahu, whom he tried to dismiss last year, and he refuses even to appear at press conferences" with the Prime Minister unless Gantz joins them.”

As for Ron Dermer, Minister of Strategic Affairs, he is a former ambassador to the United States and Netanyahu’s closest aide. Unlike the other ministers, he did not serve in the Israeli army, and his main role is to support Netanyahu and carry out diplomatic missions on his behalf.

Aryeh Deri is the leader of the second largest party in the Shas coalition, but the Supreme Court does not allow him to serve as a minister due to his conviction for tax fraud. However, he is welcomed into the government because of his “calming influence” on Netanyahu. The Shas party leader has no military experience but has been sitting in Israeli ministries since his twenties. “Sometimes, only Deri is able to convince Netanyahu to make decisions,” says an aide.

As for Gadi Eisenkot, the former Israeli Chief of Staff, he is Gantz’s quiet political partner and agrees with him on most matters. Last month, his son Gal, a reservist in an IDF infantry unit, was killed in action in Gaza, and in an emotional interview on Israeli television, Eisenkot revealed for the first time the divisions in the war council.

Eisenkot explained in his interview with The Times newspaper that “in his opinion, Israel must accept a ceasefire as part of an agreement to release the remaining prisoners. Although such a deal has not been put on the table yet (and it is not clear whether Hamas will agree to this) "The Egyptian government is trying to convince both parties to accept it. Gantz and Deri also support this, but Netanyahu, Gallant, and Dermer oppose it."

The Times noted that there is similar disagreement over accepting the demands of the Biden administration and other allies that Israel begin work on a “day after war” strategy, which would include handing over control of Gaza to the Palestinian Authority and a diplomatic process toward a two-state solution.

Eisenkot said such a discussion should have "started two and a half months ago." Netanyahu prevented any discussion in the Cabinet about this issue and publicly ruled out the possibility of anyone other than Israel assuming responsibility for security in the Gaza Strip.

The newspaper referred to the threats of Gantz and Eisenkot to withdraw from the war government, saying: “Gantz and Eisenkot have not yet announced a final date for their departure if the war government does not take a position on the prisoners, the ceasefire, and plans for the “day after the war,” but it may take days, or even weeks".

Eisenkot said in his interview: “I still feel that we are having an impact. I check myself every day,” and added, “Within months, we need to return to the Israeli public and renew confidence with it,” because Israel “needs to decide how to continue from here with a leadership that has failed completely and lost the Israeli public's confidence in the government."