ISR Finance Minister Smotrich Rejects Gaza Ceasefire Deal

Reuters reporting that Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's governing coalition, told his party that he wants "no part" of the ceasefire-for-hostage deal currently under discussion by Israel and Hamas via intermediaries in Qatar.

• Smotrich said: "This deal is a defeat and humiliation of Israel. Mr. Prime Minister, this is not an absolute victory. This is total failure. We will not be part of a deal of surrender to Hamas."
• Tal Shalev at Walla News reported a short time that Netanyahu appears to have rejected an offer from opposition leader Yair Lapid to insulate Netanyahu if members of his right-flank, like Smotrich, attempt to oust him for accepting the deal.
• Lapid said, per The Times of Israel: “There’s a hostage deal on the table. It is not true that Netanyahu has to choose between the hostage deal and his continued tenure as prime minister. I promised him a safety net, and I will keep that promise.”
• Shalev reports that, when asked if Netanyahu responded positively on the safety net, Lapid said: "No. It's heartbreaking. Unlike him, if I propose something, I will stick to it. The fact that it doesn't interest him is painful and disturbing. If we don't close a deal, it will be on him."
• AP reportsthat several "senior Hamas officials" have urged the group's exiled political leadership to accept the cease-fire proposal, noting that despite "gaps" the sides appear, "closer to a deal than they have been in months."