Netanyahu to hold Security Cabinet meeting to approve Gaza ‘occupation’ plan

On the other side, the opponents of the plan inside the Security Cabinet are believed to be Zamir, Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, National Security Adviser Tzachi Hanegbi and Mossad Director David Barnea.

Likewise, former Prime Minister and current Opposition Leader Yair Lapid announced that he had warned Netanyahu this morning that an occupation of Gaza would be “a very bad idea” and would be “pointless”.

Lapid said that he told Netanyahu: "You don’t send the State of Israel to war unless the majority of the people are behind you, and the people of Israel are not interested in this war.”

He argued that, due to the potential risk to the remaining hostages, the potential casualty count and the financial cost, the burden of an occupation would be “too heavy”.

Instead, he said that his preferred scheme is to hand governance of the territory over to third-part Arab states, enabling the IDF to focus on removing Hamas infrastructure.

Meanwhile, on Sunday, 19 former Israeli security chiefs, including former Prime Minister Ehud Barak, former IDF Chief of Staff Moshe Ya’alon and ex Mossad Chief Danny Yatom, released a video address calling for an end to the war in Gaza.

In the statement, they argued that Israel has suffered more defeats than wins and that Netanyahu has prolonged the war in his own political interests, as opposed to out of military necessity.

Ya’alon said “we have a government that the messianic zealots have pulled in a certain, irrational direction,” while former Shin Bet head, Yoram Cohen called Netanyahu’s plan a “fantasy”.