Most Israeli politicians express support for Gaza Peace Plan as PM Netanyahu argues it 'isolates Hamas'

Since U.S. President Donald Trump presented his peace plan to end the war in Gaza on Monday, nearly every relevant leader in Israel has quickly issued a public response to the plan, except for some interesting outliers.

More than usual, the reaction by the political leaders is crucial to gauge the likelihood that it will, in fact, be carried out, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition continues to hold only a razor-thin majority.

The leaders of the opposition parties largely welcomed the deal, while trying to argue that the prime minister should have agreed to a similar deal long ago.

Meanwhile, his right-wing coalition partners, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, have consistently rejected making deals with the Hamas terrorists and are expected to oppose the deal.

Notably, Ben Gvir, who is usually not shy about sharing his opinions, had yet to publicly comment on the plan at the time of publication, while Smotrich criticized it without explicitly rejecting it.

To preempt potential controversies that would threaten the government’s stability, Netanyahu decided that the government will not vote on the full plan, but only approve the exchange of hostages for Palestinian prisoners, as is required by law, Channel 12 reported.

Smotrich’s Religious Zionist Party has reportedly threatened to leave the coalition if the plan were brought for government approval.

Shortly after accepting the plan full-throatedly next to President Trump in the White House, Netanyahu began presenting the plan in a light designed to maximize approval for it on the Israeli right.

Netanyahu released another of his trademark short videos to sum up the visit to the U.S., stressing that, “Instead of Hamas isolating us, we turned things around and isolated Hamas.”

“Now the whole world, including the Arab and Muslim world, is pressuring Hamas to accept the terms that we created together with Trump, to bring back all the hostages – the living and the dead – while the IDF stays in the Strip.”

Asked by the cameraman whether Israel had now agreed to the establishment of a Palestinian state, Netanyahu replied, “Absolutely not. It’s not written in the agreement. We said we would strongly oppose a Palestinian state.”

However, Point 19 of the plan states that “when the PA reform program is faithfully carried out, the conditions may finally be in place for a credible pathway to Palestinian self-determination and statehood.”

Yossi Dagan, head of the Samaria Regional Council, warned that “unlike the speeches, the document includes a willingness to establish a terror state in Judea and Samaria, even if under conditions – this is a red line, it will never happen.”

Smotrich published a long post on 𝕏, in which he vowed to hold consultations over the issue while dismissing celebrations as “simply absurd.” However, he did not explicitly say he would quit the coalition over the plan.

“To return, after October 7 and after two years of dedication, heroism, and sacrifice … to the old mindset of entrusting our security to foreigners and illusions that someone else will do the work for us … to trade tangible achievements on the ground for political illusions … [is] a historic missed opportunity to finally break free from the shackles of Oslo,” Smotrich charged.

“In my estimation, it will also end in tears. Our children will be forced to fight in Gaza again… We will consult, consider, and decide, with God's help,” he wrote.

However, first reactions indicated that Netanyahu can count on the support of his Likud Party. Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar affirmed that the plan achieved Israel’s war aims, while the new Tourism and Housing Minister, Haim Katz, praised it for bringing about “The return of all the hostages, the removal of every existential threat, and a generation of peace for Israel’s children.”

Likud MK Avichai Boaron, who is known for his hawkish views, also argued that the deal would leave Israel to maintain a buffer zone, and that Trump had accepted “Netanyahu’s opposition to a Palestinian state.”

“Dear friends, read carefully. This is what an absolute victory looks like,” Boaron wrote on 𝕏.

Shas Chairman Aryeh Deri, who consistently advocated for a ceasefire deal, thanked God “for the success of the important summit at the White House.”

“I express full support for the President’s plan, and I pray that already by the upcoming holiday of Sukkot we will merit to see our captive sons return to the arms of their families, our reservist soldiers return home – and that we will all merit a true ‘Sukkah of Peace’,” said Deri.

The Tikva Forum, a group representing hostages' families that is more hawkish than the mainstream Hostages Forum, welcomed the plan, noting it was consistent with its demand to return all hostages at once.

Opposition leaders, meanwhile, all welcomed the plan while criticizing Netanyahu for not accepting prior proposals, which they argued were similar to Trump’s plan, a long time ago.

Calling the plan “a tremendous opportunity for Israel,” Blue and White chairman, Benny Gantz, called for Israel to unconditionally adhere to two principles: “All the hostages return at the beginning of the process. This is the most urgent matter. The second - Israel maintains its freedom of security action and does not entrust its security to a third party.”

Opposition leader Yair Lapid issued a series of tweets, praising Trump's plan as “the right basis for a hostage deal and ending the war.” But he also argued that the “most prominent thing” about the plan is that “it was actually already on the table a year and a half ago.”

He further argued that the biggest threat to the plan “is not the people who say ‘no,’ like Ben-Gvir or the Iranians, but the people who say ‘yes, but.’ Netanyahu is a seasoned and exhausting expert in ‘yes, but.’ Usually, he says the ‘yes’ in Washington, standing in front of cameras at the White House, feeling like a groundbreaking statesman, and the ‘but’ when he returns home and the ‘base’ reminds him who's boss.”

Lapid vowed that his 24 Knesset votes would “enable the passage of the agreement” even if Netanyahu’s coalition members opposed.

Yisrael Beitenu head Avigdor Liberman and the Democrats Party chairman, Yair Golan, also welcomed the American plan.

Finally, two leaders who expect to play significant roles in the coming election cycle also weighed in.

Gadi Eisenkot, who recently quit Gantz’s National Unity to establish “Yashar”, called on Netanyahu to “ignore the political threats of extremists in your government.”

He wrote that “The public supports the return of the hostages, and there is a clear majority for this in the Knesset.”

“This will be a first step – long overdue – toward repair, healing, and hope for securing our shared future in Israel,” he said.

Next to Ben Gvir, the other notable leader who did not immediately comment was former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, who finally expressed his opinion on Tuesday morning.

Recounting the “disaster” of Oct. 7, 2023, Bennet noted that “now, the massacre and the war are supposed to come to an end after the Israeli government apologized (!) to the funders of the massacre in Qatar and is releasing hundreds of terrorist murderers of the Sinwar type.”

“This is a painful step, but a necessary one, since the Israeli government has failed to achieve a decisive victory over Hamas or to bring our suffering brothers and sisters home from captivity – and the price we are paying and will continue to pay in human lives is unbearable.”