1 00:00:01,566 --> 00:00:03,633 GEOFF BENNETT: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu pushed 2 00:00:03,633 --> 00:00:08,133 back today against criticism of his Gaza strategy from within his own government. 3 00:00:08,133 --> 00:00:13,033 Israel's defense minister accused Netanyahu of indecision and leading Israel down 4 00:00:13,033 --> 00:00:18,033 a -- quote -- "dangerous course." The public infighting comes as the Biden administration 5 00:00:19,900 --> 00:00:22,833 this week said Israel did not have a political plan for what's next in Gaza. 6 00:00:22,833 --> 00:00:25,600 Nick Schifrin has been following this, and he's here with us now. 7 00:00:25,600 --> 00:00:28,466 So, Nick, what happened today in Israel? It looks 8 00:00:28,466 --> 00:00:31,800 like the private infighting has burst into public view. 9 00:00:31,800 --> 00:00:35,733 NICK SCHIFRIN: For months, the Israeli military has been pushing Benjamin Netanyahu to look 10 00:00:35,733 --> 00:00:40,700 beyond individual military operations and lay out a political plan for the future of Gaza, 11 00:00:42,800 --> 00:00:46,233 lay out the goals that the military operations that he's ordered are designed to achieve. 12 00:00:48,433 --> 00:00:51,500 And, today, Gallant, the defense minister, said that, since October, he and military commanders 13 00:00:53,633 --> 00:00:56,633 have been pushing for a plan to have governance in Gaza led by Palestinians with international 14 00:00:58,766 --> 00:01:02,233 actors, and that would presumably require the Palestinian Authority to participate. 15 00:01:02,233 --> 00:01:05,733 And, today, Gallant said that his proposal was never even 16 00:01:05,733 --> 00:01:10,733 debated and no alternative had ever been proposed. 17 00:01:12,666 --> 00:01:14,666 YOAV GALLANT, Israeli Defense Minister (through translator): Indecision is, 18 00:01:14,666 --> 00:01:18,600 in essence, a decision. This leads to a dangerous course which promotes the idea 19 00:01:20,733 --> 00:01:23,633 of Israeli military and civilian governance in Gaza. This is a negative and dangerous option 20 00:01:25,600 --> 00:01:29,733 for the state of Israel, strategically, militarily and from a security standpoint. 21 00:01:31,933 --> 00:01:34,900 We must make tough decisions for the future of our country, favoring national priorities above 22 00:01:37,133 --> 00:01:40,633 all other possible considerations, even with the possibility of personal or political costs. 23 00:01:42,166 --> 00:01:44,500 NICK SCHIFRIN: Those personal or political costs 24 00:01:44,500 --> 00:01:47,866 that he's speaking about is a direct reference to Netanyahu. 25 00:01:47,866 --> 00:01:52,233 There are senior U.S. officials who I speak to, Geoff, who are increasingly concerned 26 00:01:52,233 --> 00:01:57,200 that Netanyahu is prolonging the war in order to remain prime minister. Netanyahu, of course, 27 00:01:59,333 --> 00:02:03,333 denies that. And he said today that his plan was to install Gazan families unaffiliated with 28 00:02:05,233 --> 00:02:10,100 either Hamas or the Palestinian Authority, but that plan had been blocked by Hamas. 29 00:02:12,800 --> 00:02:14,600 BENJAMIN NETANYAHU, Israeli Prime Minister (through translator): Therefore, 30 00:02:14,600 --> 00:02:17,666 all the talk about the day after, while Hamas remains intact, will 31 00:02:17,666 --> 00:02:22,433 remain mere words devoid of content. Contrary to what is being claimed, 32 00:02:22,433 --> 00:02:27,433 for months, we have been engaged in various efforts to resolve this complex problem. 33 00:02:29,266 --> 00:02:32,466 In any case, there's no alternative to military victory. The attempt to bypass 34 00:02:32,466 --> 00:02:37,466 it with this or that claim is simply detached from reality. There's one alternative to victory, 35 00:02:38,800 --> 00:02:42,600 defeat, military, diplomatic and national defeat. 36 00:02:42,600 --> 00:02:44,400 NICK SCHIFRIN: Detached from reality. He's speaking about 37 00:02:44,400 --> 00:02:46,600 his own defense minister's comments there. 38 00:02:46,600 --> 00:02:51,600 It's important to note that Netanyahu is worried about his coalition staying intact, 39 00:02:53,633 --> 00:02:55,666 members of which have been called -- have called for the reoccupation of Gaza and 40 00:02:55,666 --> 00:02:58,500 a much more punishing military operation in Gaza. 41 00:02:58,500 --> 00:03:02,833 One of them today, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, tweeted this. 42 00:03:02,833 --> 00:03:07,833 He said that "Gallant failed on October 7. He continues to fail now and must be replaced." 43 00:03:10,333 --> 00:03:13,333 GEOFF BENNETT: So, how does the Biden administration view all of this? 44 00:03:13,333 --> 00:03:16,733 NICK SCHIFRIN: The Biden administration has been pushing Netanyahu to accept the Palestinian 45 00:03:16,733 --> 00:03:21,733 Authority to run Gaza after the war, and that would unlock some of the larger proposals that the 46 00:03:24,033 --> 00:03:28,533 Biden team has been pursuing, especially unlocking Arab participation in the day-after plan. 47 00:03:30,566 --> 00:03:34,400 And, this week, Jake Sullivan made another criticism public. He said that Netanyahu 48 00:03:34,400 --> 00:03:39,266 needed to embrace some kind of political strategy, those goals to -- that he wanted 49 00:03:39,266 --> 00:03:44,266 to achieve in order to win this war. And U.S. officials tell me that call has not been heeded. 50 00:03:46,066 --> 00:03:48,266 GEOFF BENNETT: Meantime, Nick, Israeli forces are expanding their operation in 51 00:03:48,266 --> 00:03:52,633 Rafah. Is this the same operation that the Biden administration has been advising Israel against? 52 00:03:52,633 --> 00:03:56,866 NICK SCHIFRIN: U.S. officials tell me that the operation so far has been targeted at the 53 00:03:56,866 --> 00:04:01,500 border in order to prevent Hamas from smuggling both weapons and people in, 54 00:04:01,500 --> 00:04:06,400 and U.S. officials say they have been doing that, as well as in the eastern part of Rafah. 55 00:04:06,400 --> 00:04:11,400 Netanyahu said today that half-a-million people from Rafah had fled and that -- quote -- "The 56 00:04:13,366 --> 00:04:16,666 humanitarian catastrophe that's been spoken of has not been realized, nor will it." 57 00:04:18,433 --> 00:04:21,533 But we spoke to Dr. Adam Hamawy, one of 10 American doctors who's stuck 58 00:04:21,533 --> 00:04:26,300 in a hospital in Southern Rafah. He's been stuck there since Israeli forces seized the 59 00:04:26,300 --> 00:04:31,300 border and closed the border. He served in Iraq, and he helped save the life of 60 00:04:33,366 --> 00:04:36,633 Senator Tammy Duckworth in 2004 when she was injured. That injury cost her both her legs. 61 00:04:38,666 --> 00:04:42,500 And Hamawy said today that the conditions in his hospital were both dire and tragic. 62 00:04:44,600 --> 00:04:46,500 DR. ADAM HAMAWY, Palestinian American Medical Association: The hardest thing for me is, 63 00:04:46,500 --> 00:04:50,666 honestly, the little children that are coming in with life-changing injuries. 64 00:04:52,366 --> 00:04:56,933 It's the boy that I took care of today that lost an arm, two legs, 65 00:05:00,100 --> 00:05:05,033 and part of his remaining hand. I took care of both U.S. military, 66 00:05:07,466 --> 00:05:11,800 Iraqi military. I took care of contractors. I took care of civilians that were injured in the fight. 67 00:05:15,533 --> 00:05:20,533 But the degree and the level of casualties that are innocent civilians, most of my 68 00:05:23,500 --> 00:05:28,500 patients have been young children, women and elderly people that are in their 60s and 70s. 69 00:05:31,366 --> 00:05:34,133 NICK SCHIFRIN: Israel blames Hamas for all of those civilian casualties, 70 00:05:34,133 --> 00:05:36,266 Geoff. And Duckworth says she's appealing to both 71 00:05:36,266 --> 00:05:39,400 the Israeli government and the U.S. government to try and get him out. 72 00:05:39,400 --> 00:05:41,233 GEOFF BENNETT: OK. 73 00:05:41,233 --> 00:05:42,133 Nick Schifrin, thanks for that great reporting. We appreciate it. 74 00:05:42,133 --> 00:05:46,733 NICK SCHIFRIN: Thank you.