Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel has vowed to destroy Hamas’s “military and governing capabilities” in Gaza and still says the war will not end until that goal is achieved. But Israel’s military establishment — worn down by the ongoing war in Gaza and weighing the possibility of a large-scale fight with Hezbollah in Lebanon — now backs a cease-fire deal even at the cost of leaving Hamas in power.
Michael Milshtein, a former senior Israeli intelligence officer, said Israel was not going to successfully topple Hamas, leaving a cease-fire deal to bring home the remaining hostages as the least bad outcome.
“It is an extremely difficult pill to swallow,” said Mr. Milshtein, who oversaw the Palestinian affairs division in Israeli military intelligence. “But there are no good alternatives here.”
Israel’s political leaders, however, are deeply divided on the proposed deal, which some argue would effectively leave Hamas in power in Gaza. Although the top Israeli leadership has given a green light to the proposal, two senior members of Mr. Netanyahu’s coalition have vowed to oppose it, threatening to bolt from the government, potentially forcing him to choose between a cease-fire and his political survival.
On Friday, Benny Gantz, an opposition leader who recently quit Mr. Netanyahu’s war cabinet, reiterated that he would back the prime minister if he decided to advance a cease-fire deal to release hostages. In that case, Mr. Netanyahu would be forced to rely on his rivals for support, a combustible situation that would almost certainly force him to eventually call elections.
