Israeli so-called “National Security” Minister Itamar Ben Gvir officially resigned from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government on Sunday, along with his three party ministers, following his earlier threats to withdraw if the controversial prisoner exchange deal and ceasefire agreement with Hamas were approved.
The ceasefire took effect Sunday morning.
Ben Gvir’s party, Otzma Yehudit, announced its withdrawal from the governing coalition in a strongly worded statement, condemning the agreement as a “shameful capitulation” to Hamas.
The party criticized the deal for including the release of “hundreds of murderers,” some of whom will return to the occupied city of Jerusalem and the West Bank. It also decried the ceasefire, claiming it undermined the military gains achieved during the recent conflict, marked by the withdrawal of Israeli occupation forces from Gaza.
In the statement, Otzma Yehudit accused the government of “surrendering to Hamas” and formally declared that Ben Gvir, along with Ministers Yitzhak Wasserlauf and Amichai Eliyahu, submitted their resignations to Netanyahu.
Israeli occupation national security minister resigns in protest over #Hamas deal
Itamar #Ben_Gvir said his party, #Otzma_Yehudit, will not return to the coalition “without a complete victory over Hamas & the full achievement of the war’s objectives.”
Occupation National… pic.twitter.com/E4lgkLwu6W
— ⚡️🌎 World News 🌐⚡️ (@ferozwala) January 19, 2025
The party’s Knesset members—Tzvika Fogel, Limor Son Har-Melech, and Yitzhak Kroizer—also resigned from their parliamentary committee roles.
Israeli Supreme Court Rejects Petitions Against Prisoner Exchange
In a related development, the Israeli enemy’s Supreme Court dismissed petitions filed against the prisoner exchange agreement with Hamas, part of the ceasefire deal.
The petitions, submitted by organizations Bechirot BeChayim and Almagor, as well as families of Zionists, sought to prevent the release of Palestinian prisoners. The court ruled it could not intervene, citing a lack of legal grounds, as reported by the Zionist public broadcaster KAN.
The petitioners had argued that releasing security prisoners, many of whom were involved in past attacks, could harm the Israeli occupation security and enable their return to armed resistance.
Under the terms of the agreement, the Israeli occupation will release 1,904 Palestinian prisoners, including 737 detainees held in Israeli prisons and 1,167 from Gaza detained during recent ground operations. In return, 33 of the 98 Zionist captives held by Gaza resistance factions will be freed.
Source: Al-Manar Website
