Blue and White Party leader MK Benny Gantz will hold a press conference Saturday night, ahead of the possibility that he may join the government to facilitate a hostage exchange deal.
Gantz is expected to present his conditions for joining the government, which include a “time-bound initiative” for the return of hostages and a resolution to the military draft crisis.
Kan News reported that Gantz is considering the move in light of the expected opposition from ministers Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich to a hostage release deal. So far, opposition leaders have mainly discussed providing a “safety net” for the coalition in order to carry out a hostage deal, but now Gantz has raised the possibility of actually entering the government.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has not yet made a final decision regarding the deal proposal submitted this week by the mediators.
Opposition leader MK Yair Lapid also responded to the report, addressing Netanyahu: “You have from me a safety net of 24 votes for any hostage deal. You don’t even have to give anything in return — just bring them home.”