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Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel blasted his defense minister, Yoav Gallant, on Monday after the Israeli news media reported that Mr. Gallant had disparaged the Israeli leader’s goal of “total victory” over Hamas, the armed Palestinian group Israel has been battling in Gaza.
The strongly worded statement from Mr. Netanyahu’s office was a reflection of a rift within Mr. Netanyahu’s right-wing government, and in Israel more broadly, over the prosecution of the war, now in its 11th month.
Ynet, a centrist Israeli news outlet, reported that Mr. Gallant had told members of the Israeli Parliament’s foreign affairs and defense committee on Monday that Mr. Netanyahu’s “total victory” slogan was “nonsense.” A member of the committee, who spoke on condition of anonymity to disclose details of the closed-door meeting, confirmed Mr. Gallant used the term.
“When Gallant adopts the anti-Israel narrative, he harms the chances of reaching a hostage release deal,” the prime minister’s office said. “Israel has only one choice: To achieve total victory, which means eliminating Hamas’s military and governing capabilities, and releasing our hostages. This victory will be achieved.”
Realizing that goal, Mr. Netanyahu’s office said, was the directive of the prime minister and the cabinet, which everyone in the government, including Mr. Gallant, must follow.
Mr. Gallant, in a post on social media on Monday, seemed to play down his differences with Mr. Netanyahu. “During a security briefing I gave today to the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, I emphasized I was determined to achieve the war’s goals and continue fighting until Hamas is dismantled and the hostages are returned,” he said.
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Pointedly, he also criticized whoever had leaked what happened in a closed-door meeting. “One of the main vulnerabilities revealed in the war, against which we must act with full force, are the incessant leaks from sensitive and classified meetings,” he said. Mr. Gallant stressed his career of public service and commitment to Israel’s security, noting that Israel was facing challenging days ahead.
Firing Mr. Gallant was not on the agenda for Mr. Netanyahu, according to a second Israeli official, who spoke on condition of anonymity and was not authorized to communicate with reporters. Mr. Netanyahu could still oust Mr. Gallant from his role at a later date, if he decides to take such action.
The rift comes during a critical week in the conflict, when Israel is bracing for an expected retaliation from Iran and its ally Hezbollah in Lebanon, even as intense diplomatic efforts are underway to hammer out a cease-fire in the Gaza conflict and avert a wider war.
For months, Mr. Netanyahu has said that he was committed to dismantling Hamas’s military and government, and to freeing Israeli hostages. But senior members of the Israeli security establishment have argued that the two goals can’t be achieved simultaneously. Many security officials have argued that a cease-fire agreement with Hamas is the only way to bring the roughly 115 dead and living hostages home.
Hamas has consistently said any cease-fire agreement should include an end to the war and a full withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza. Mr. Netanyahu has suggested he would only be open to a temporary pause in the war of several weeks.
Mr. Gallant, a member of Mr. Netanyahu’s Likud party, has frequently been at odds with the prime minister, clashing with him over legislation seeking the overhaul of the Israeli judiciary, proposals for the future administration of Gaza, and the cease-fire talks.
After more centrist politicians left Mr. Netanyahu’s government in June, many political analysts said Mr. Gallant, who was a senior general in the military, became the main voice of moderation within the government’s decision-making circles.
Johnatan Reiss contributed reporting to this article.
— Adam Rasgon reporting from Jerusalem
Key Developments
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The leaders of Britain, France and Germany urged Iran to avoid inflaming regional tensions, warning in a joint statement on Monday that a military escalation in the Middle East could disrupt efforts to reach a cease-fire in Gaza. Iran has said it would avenge the assassination of a Hamas leader in Tehran on July 31, a killing it blames on Israel. “We call on Iran and its allies to refrain from attacks that would further escalate regional tensions and jeopardize the opportunity to agree a cease-fire and the release of hostages,” read the statement by Prime Minister Keir Starmer of Britain, President Emmanuel Macron of France and Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany. The statement did not directly mention Israel, while affirming support for efforts by the United States, Egypt and Qatar to resume Gaza cease-fire talks “with no further delay.”
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United States intelligence suggests it is “increasingly likely” that Iran or its proxies will attack Israel in the coming days, John Kirby, the White House national security spokesman, told reporters on Monday as President Biden held talks with European leaders on the military situation in the Middle East. Mr. Kirby said U.S. intelligence agencies shared the view “that that’s something could happen as soon as this week.” Mr. Biden spoke with the leaders of Britain, France, Germany and Italy on Monday about efforts to de-escalate tensions and broker a cease-fire deal between Israel and Hamas.
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The Israeli military ordered civilians to evacuate from part of the humanitarian zone it had set up in southwestern Gaza, saying on Sunday that it was planning to fight in the area because Hamas had “embedded terrorist infrastructure” there. In recent days, tens of thousands of people had fled the city of Khan Younis after evacuation orders issued by Israel’s military last week. The new order on Sunday covered the neighborhood of al-Jalaa in Khan Younis. Israel’s military said it was redrawing the border of the humanitarian zone and urged civilians to move to what it said were safe areas.
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The Israeli military on Monday raised the number of militants it claimed its forces killed on Saturday in a strike on a former Gaza school facility to 31, from 19, providing names and photos of combatants it says fell in the attack. The strike on the school compound on Saturday killed more than 100 Palestinians, according to health authorities in Gaza, who do not distinguish between civilians and fighters when describing casualties. The Israeli attack and the high death toll drew sharp condemnation in the international community.
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Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III has ordered the guided-missile submarine Georgia to the Middle East, underscoring the threat of the regional crisis involving Israel and Iran that has threatened to spark a wider war, the Pentagon said.
On Sunday, Mr. Austin spoke with his Israeli counterpart, Yoav Gallant, the third call the two are known to have held in a week, as fears rose of an escalation in the conflict.In the call, Mr. Austin “reiterated the United States’ commitment to take every possible step to defend Israel,” according to a summary provided by the Pentagon press secretary, Maj. Gen. Patrick Ryder.
General Ryder’s announcement said that Mr. Austin had moved the U.S.S. Georgia submarine to the Middle East was rare, as the Pentagon rarely talks about the movements of its submarine fleet. The Georgia can fire cruise missiles and carry teams of Navy SEAL commandos.
General Ryder noted that Mr. Austin had already ordered additional combat aircraft and missile-shooting warships to the region. The orders came in response to threats from Iran and its proxies in Gaza, Lebanon and Yemen to attack Israel to avenge the assassination of a top Hamas leader, Ismail Haniyeh, in Tehran on July 31.
Mr. Austin has also directed the aircraft carrier Abraham Lincoln, equipped with F-35 fighter jets, to accelerate its arrival in the region, joining the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt and its accompanying warships already in the Gulf of Oman.
The Lincoln, which was in the Sulu Sea near the Philippines on Monday, was originally expected to relieve the Roosevelt at the end of this month. But the warship is now anticipated to arrive in the region in the next two or three days, and could overlap with the Roosevelt for at least a couple of weeks, doubling the carrier firepower in the region.
“Are we trying to send a message? Absolutely,” General Ryder told reporters on Monday. “We’re looking to de-escalate tensions.”
A statement from the Israeli government said that Mr. Gallant had spoken to Mr. Austin about the Israeli military’s “readiness and capabilities in the face of threats posed by Iran and its regional proxies.”
The Israeli defense minister also discussed “the urgency of achieving an agreement for the release of hostages and thanked the U.S. administration for its leadership and commitment to this issue,” the statement said. The United States and Arab mediators are preparing to present what they have called a “final” proposal for a cease-fire in Gaza at a meeting on Thursday in the Middle East that Israel has said its negotiators will attend. Hamas has not indicated whether its representatives will be at the meeting.
The call between Mr. Austin and Mr. Gallant came a day after an Israeli airstrike hit a school compound in northern Gaza where displaced Palestinians were sheltering, an attack that Gazan authorities said killed dozens of people. Mr. Austin used the call to once again underscore the importance of “mitigating civilian harm” during Israeli operations in the enclave, General Ryder said.
— Eric Schmitt reporting from Washington
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The Middle East entered a high-wire week of risk and opportunity on Monday, suspended between the prospect of a broadening conflict and intensive diplomatic efforts to prevent one.
Nearly two weeks after the back-to-back assassinations of a senior Hezbollah commander in Beirut and a Hamas leader in Tehran, Israel remained on high alert for possible retaliatory strikes by the Lebanese Hezbollah militia and its patron, Iran.
At the same time, the Biden administration and Arab mediators have called for a high-level meeting on Thursday to try to advance a deal for a cease-fire in the war in Gaza that could help stave off the danger of escalating tit-for-tat strikes setting off a bigger regional conflagration.
President Biden and the leaders of the other mediating countries, Egypt and Qatar, said last week that they were prepared to present a “final” proposal to end the war, and they called on Israel and Hamas to return to the negotiating table after weeks of an impasse in talks.
In a joint statement, Mr. Biden, along with President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi of Egypt and Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani of Qatar, declared that “the time has come” to conclude the deal for a cease-fire and the release of hostages abducted to Gaza in exchange for Palestinian prisoners and detainees held by Israel.
Israel will send its negotiating team to the meeting, which is expected to take place in Cairo or Doha, Qatar, “in order to finalize the details of the implementation of the framework agreement,” according to a statement from the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
But with gaps on substantive issues remaining — and Mr. Netanyahu and Hamas officials trading blame for the failure to close them — there was little expectation that a deal could be concluded at Thursday’s meeting. It was unclear to what extent Hamas was willing to engage in the talks. In a statement on Sunday, the group said it objected to “more rounds of negotiations” and the introduction of any new proposals or conditions.
Major sticking points include Mr. Netanyahu’s demand for a mechanism to block armed militants from moving back into northern Gaza, though Israel left the wording vague and has not specified what kind of mechanism; and the lack of any agreement so far over which hostages and which Palestinian prisoners would be released in the first phase of the deal.
Against this backdrop, Israel was pressing ahead with its offensive in Gaza despite sharp international condemnation for a deadly strike on Saturday on a school compound where displaced Palestinians were sheltering.
The Israeli military issued a new evacuation order on Sunday for a neighborhood on the edge of a humanitarian zone, saying it was about to operate against armed groups in the area. It also said that its air force had struck about 30 Hamas targets throughout the Gaza Strip over the previous 24 hours, including military structures, an anti-tank missile launch post and weapons storage facilities.
Officials in Gaza said over the weekend that dozens of people had been killed in Israel’s strike on the school compound. The Israeli military disputed that account and defended the strike, saying it had carried out a precise operation and eliminated at least 19 militants who were using the compound as a command center.
The authorities in Gaza do not distinguish between combatants and civilians in reporting death tolls. In statements over the weekend, Hamas said that all those killed were civilians. None of the claims could be independently verified.
Israel’s political and military leaders have argued that it is essential to keep up the military pressure on Hamas, to force it to come to terms on a cease-fire deal.
Still, there was a sense of foreboding in Israel, which was preparing to observe the Jewish fast of Tisha B’Av, commemorating historic disasters that have befallen the Jewish people.
For the annual day of mourning, which starts at sunset on Monday and lasts through Tuesday, some rabbis have composed special prayers to mark the Hamas-led assault on southern Israel on Oct. 7, which prompted the war in Gaza.
The fast, traditionally marking the destruction of two ancient Jewish temples in Jerusalem, could also stoke tensions around a contested holy site in the city that is revered by Muslims as the Aqsa Mosque and by Jews as the site of the temples.
— Isabel Kershner reporting from Jerusalem
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Iran vowed revenge at the end of last month after a top Hamas leader was killed in Tehran, leading many in Israel to fear an imminent attack. Nearly two weeks have passed and no large-scale response has materialized, leaving Israel and the wider Middle East on edge.
The crisis comes at an especially delicate moment in Iran, which analysts say is trying to formulate a response that doesn’t let an assassination on its soil go unpunished, while avoiding an all-out war against a powerful adversary. It also comes as a new government in Tehran has taken office, which could be slowing a decision on how to respond.
Here’s a look at the crisis and the factors that could determine what happens next:
Why has Iran vowed revenge?
Iran and Hamas officials have promised to avenge the death of Ismail Haniyeh, a senior Hamas leader, who was killed in Tehran on July 31 after he attended the inauguration of Iran’s president, Masoud Pezeshkian. Iran, which backs Hamas, blamed Israel for the assassination. Israeli leaders have not said their forces were responsible.
A day earlier, Fuad Shukr, a senior commander in Hezbollah, which is also supported by Iran, was killed in an Israeli airstrike in a suburb of the Lebanese capital, Beirut. The Israeli government said that strike was in retaliation for a rocket fired from Lebanon that struck a soccer field in the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights, killing at least 12 people, mostly teenagers and children. Hezbollah has denied carrying out that attack.
But Mr. Haniyeh’s killing was seen as the greater blow to Tehran because it took place on Iranian soil. In response, Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, issued an order for Iran to strike Israel directly, according to three Iranian officials briefed on the matter.
Why hasn’t Iran responded yet?
A spokesman for Iran’s Foreign Ministry, Nasser Kanaan, said that “it is necessary to punish Israel,” echoing comments from other senior Iranian officials. But he also said that “Tehran is not interested in escalating the regional conflicts.”
Furthermore, the new president’s cabinet, including the foreign minister, is yet to be approved, which is likely to have slowed internal deliberations, said Sanam Vakil, a Middle East analyst at Chatham House, a research group in London.
At the same time, Mr. Pezeshkian, who is seen as a reformist, may try to balance a perceived need to project strength with his government’s broader interest in alleviating the effects of Western economic sanctions and in preventing Iran from becoming further isolated internationally, Ms. Vakil said.
“The response has to be carefully calibrated so as not to slam shut the door of negotiations with the West that could lead to potential sanctions relief,” Ms. Vakil said.
A military response that is viewed as largely symbolic is also risky from Tehran’s perspective, but it would be unlikely to deter Israel from conducting further attacks, said Ali Vaez, the Iran project director of Crisis Group, a think tank.
That leaves the option of a substantive response, but that would, in turn, likely provoke a bigger Israeli response — and Tehran would not be able to control the cycle of escalation that could follow, Mr. Vaez said.
“Israel has checkmated Iran in this situation because Iran is left with no good options,” said Mr. Vaez. He and Ms. Vakil both said that it is difficult to discern Iran’s intentions.
What could an Iranian response look like?
Iran could strike Israel from multiple directions and in different forms. Tehran maintains a network of proxy forces including Hamas, Hezbollah and the Houthi militia in Yemen, giving it the ability to attack targets from northern Israel to the Red Sea.
In April, Tehran attacked Israel with around 300 missiles and drones, a response to an apparent Israeli strike on an Iranian embassy complex. Almost all were shot down by Israel’s air defenses assisted by the United States and other allies. It was the first direct attack by Iran after a clandestine war with Israel that had been conducted for years by land, sea, air and cyberspace and, as such, represented a significant escalation.
The attack in April caused light damage to an Israeli air base in the Negev desert and seriously wounded a 7-year-old girl. Now Israel is bracing for what could be a bigger attack.
How is Israel preparing?
The Israeli authorities have told people to stock food and water in fortified safe rooms, and hospitals have made plans to move patients to underground wards. At the same time, rescue teams have been positioned in cities.
U.S. and Israeli diplomats and security officials had some advanced knowledge of its scope and intensity of Iran’s attack in April, which facilitated defensive preparations. By the same token, the nearly two weeks that have passed since Mr. Haniyeh’s killing have allowed time for heightened readiness in Israel.
Last week, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that Israel was “prepared for defense, as well as offense.”
That said, military analysts say that Iran and Hezbollah could potentially overwhelm Israel’s defenses by firing enough missiles simultaneously. They could also launch swarms of drones that fly at low altitude, making them difficult to detect and destroy.
How are the United States and others responding?
Diplomats have feared for months that back-and-forth strikes between Israel and Iran could escalate into a regional conflict that would compound both the war in Gaza and the conflict on Israel’s border with Lebanon. As a result, they have worked to forestall or minimize Iran’s reaction.
The foreign minister of Jordan, an ally of the United States, has traveled to Tehran in recent days for meetings. Saudi Arabia last week convened an emergency meeting of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, a forum of Muslim countries, at which it called the assassination of Mr. Haniyeh a violation of Iran’s sovereignty while urging de-escalation by all sides.
The United States has stepped up its military readiness. Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III has ordered additional combat aircraft, warships and a guided-missile submarine to the Middle East in response to threats, both to bolster Israel’s capacity to thwart any potential attack and to reinforce the message that it would support the country militarily.
At the same time, the Biden administration has sought to jump-start cease-fire talks for Gaza. The Biden administration and Arab mediators are planning a meeting in the region on Thursday to try to advance a deal. Israel has said it will send its negotiators, but Hamas has not said if it will participate.