Special to WorldTribune.com

JERUSALEM — The government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been stung by criticism of its willingness to reach a ceasefire with Hamas.

On July 15, Netanyahu fired a leading critic, Deputy Defense Minister Danny Danon, who said the government surrendered to Hamas and its international allies.

“At a time when the government of Israel and the Israel Defense Forces are in the midst of a military campaign against the terrorist organizations and is taking determined action to maintain the security of Israel’s citizens, it cannot be that the deputy defense minister will sharply attack the leadership of the country regarding the campaign,” Netanyahu said.

Officials said Danon, a leading member of the prime minister’s Likud Party, represented the views of many in Netanyahu’s Cabinet. Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman and Economy Minister Naftali Bennet, who head independent factions, have also been critical of the government.

“The prime minister is responsible for better or worse,” Danon said on Israel television. “The responsibility for this failure belongs to the prime minister. Hamas determined when to begin [the war], when to end and the results.”

The criticism of Netanyahu came as Hamas and its Palestinian allies fired medium-range rockets toward the Israeli cities of Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. On July 15, Israel reported its first casualty from a rocket strike from the Gaza Strip.

So far, Hamas has rejected the Egyptian-mediated ceasefire. Nearly 200 rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip since the ceasefire was to have taken place on July 15, 9 a.m.

“It’s hard to call this a military victory,” Israel’s Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies said. “It is more a strategic miss. Israel didn’t lose this war, but it didn’t win it either. It didn’t effect a significant change
in the strategic balance versus the Hamas in the Gaza Strip.”

By late July 15, Netanyahu, said to be under intense pressure from the
United States, ordered a resumption of air strikes on the Gaza Strip. He
said the decision was taken with Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon, who has not
responded to the ceasefire accord.

“Hamas chose to continue the campaign, and it will pay for this
decision,” Netanyahu said.

The Israeli military has been contacting Palestinians in the northern
Gaza Strip. The military urged nearly 100,000 residents to flee their homes
for what could mark an imminent operation. By mid-July 16, however, there
were no reports of an Israeli invasion.

“For your safety, you are requested to leave your homes immediately and
travel towards Gaza City by Wednesday [July 16] at 8 a.m.,” the military
said in leaflets dropped on northern Gaza. “The Israel Defense Forces does not wish
to harm you or your families.”

  Benjamin Netanyahu, Danny Danon, Naftali Bennet, Netanyahu burned by openness to ceasefire with Hamas