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Netanyahu Ready to ‘Resign’ but Wants to Set Regional Peace Plan First

Benjamin Netanyahu during his inspection of the Rafael Defense Company in Haifa (dpa)
Benjamin Netanyahu during his inspection of the Rafael Defense Company in Haifa (dpa)
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Netanyahu Ready to ‘Resign’ but Wants to Set Regional Peace Plan First

Benjamin Netanyahu during his inspection of the Rafael Defense Company in Haifa (dpa)
Benjamin Netanyahu during his inspection of the Rafael Defense Company in Haifa (dpa)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is considering the possibility of resigning, but he is first devising a plan to remain in position for months to come to achieve a comprehensive regional peace plan together with US President Joe Biden, said political sources.

Several polls have shown that Netanyahu's days in office are numbered.

Political sources close to Netanyahu said the plan includes a settlement for his trial on corruption charges.

The Public Prosecution began two years ago, negotiating with Netanyahu on a judicial package for his trial, where he would be convicted and sentenced to suspended imprisonment on the condition that he confess to the charges and retire from politics for seven years.

However, he refused.

The PM is considering retiring, but not immediately after the war. Following Biden's vision, he aims to achieve victory and engage in comprehensive regional negotiations.

The sources estimated that the Hamas movement will now begin bringing members of the international media to the Gaza Strip during the truce as part of an intense propaganda campaign to convey images of the destruction caused by Israel.

The movement is hoping to restore international pressure on Israel to end the fighting intensively, with a high possibility that the US will join the demand for a long-term ceasefire and begin global communications to achieve a political settlement that determines the status of the Strip.

According to Netanyahu's estimates, the centrist party, headed by Benny Gantz, will withdraw from the government, and people will launch a march on the streets demanding Netanyahu's resignation.

A source familiar with the matter said that the talks are still preliminary.

The future of the deal with Hamas and the future of the war in Gaza will affect the decision-making process, he said, adding that Netanyahu will decide based on the developments and the emerging public-political situation.

Netanyahu's office was quick to deny the reports, saying they were baseless.

The statement said Netanyahu asserts the war will not stop and is focused on completing all of the war's goals until its end: liquidating Hamas, releasing the captives, and creating a reality in which Gaza no longer threatens Israel.

Journalist Uri Misgav said Netanyahu still acts as if he is the savior of the people of Israel.

Misgav stated that Netanyahu does not understand that the Israelis view him as the problem and not the solution, adding that a person like him should be on trial for financial, political, and security corruption that brought Israel "the calamity of Oct. 7" referring to the al-Aqsa Flood operation.

The journalist asserted that Netanyahu must resign immediately and not wait until the war ends.

The Friday weekly opinion poll of Maariv newspaper indicated an additional decline in Likud seats. The party would win just 18 seats compared to the 32 it won in November 2022.

If elections were to be held in Israel today, extremist Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich's party would fail to win the 3.25 percent vote minimum to enter the Knesset.

According to the survey, parties in the current government, which together won 64 seats in November 2022, would crash to just 41 seats out of 120 if elections were to be held today, the lowest percentage the right has obtained all year.

Gantz's National Unity party has continued to rise in popularity and would secure 43 seats compared to the 12 it currently holds.

Accordingly, if elections were held for the Knesset now, the opposition parties combined in the "change" alliance merged with the Arab Hadash-Taal would soar to 79. They could form a sufficient coalition to form a government led by Gantz.

Regarding whether Netanyahu or Gantz is more suited to be prime minister, 52 percent of respondents said Gantz, and 27 percent said Netanyahu.

When the question was directed at Likud voters, 56 percent said Netanyahu should lead the country, while 26 percent said they would back Gantz.

The Arab parties are united in two blocs, each of which currently has five seats and will also obtain five seats if the elections were held today, according to the poll.

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World

Senate Republicans Again Block Bid to Limit Trump’s Iran War Powers

Senate Majority Leader John Thune speaks at a news conference at the Capitol on September 5, 2025 (AP)  
Senate Majority Leader John Thune speaks at a news conference at the Capitol on September 5, 2025 (AP)  
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Senate Republicans Again Block Bid to Limit Trump’s Iran War Powers

Senate Majority Leader John Thune speaks at a news conference at the Capitol on September 5, 2025 (AP)  
Senate Majority Leader John Thune speaks at a news conference at the Capitol on September 5, 2025 (AP)  

Washington: Robert Jimison, Megan Mineiro

Senate Republicans on Wednesday blocked the latest Democratic-led effort to curb President Trump’s authority to wage war on Iran, as a fragile ceasefire frays, dueling blockades choke traffic through the Strait of Hormuz and failed talks leave the next phase of the conflict uncertain.

The move to take up the measure failed on a vote of 52 to 47. It fell largely along party lines, with Republicans and a single Democrat, Senator John Fetterman of Pennsylvania, opposed and Democrats joined by a lone Republican, Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky, in favor.

Fourth Trial

It was the fourth time in recent weeks that Democrats have tried and failed to force Congress to reassert its war powers as the conflict, now stretching into its second month, continues. The repeated defeats underscore the durability of Republican backing for Trump, as his allies on Capitol Hill have foregone oversight of the war and repeatedly sought to avoid placing meaningful constraints on his authority.

Still, in the run-up to the vote, some GOP lawmakers suggested that their patience was wearing thin as the conflict drags on, its economic fallout reverberates among their constituents, and the president’s bellicose statements intensify.

“I hope that we are arriving at an exit strategy here to bring this to a close to preserve our security interests and bring down the cost of gasoline,” Senator Josh Hawley of Missouri said of the war, now in its seventh week.

Other Republicans said the administration should do more to lay out its objectives and plan for the conflict. They expressed a fervent desire to see it end promptly.

60-Day Mission

Senator Mike Rounds of South Dakota said that should the president expect Congress to support continuing the conflict beyond 60 days — the initial window that the law gives a president to deploy armed forces into hostilities without congressional approval — officials from the administration should “come in and give us a full description of it and sell the point and the plan.”

The statutory deadline for Trump to either pull out US troops or request a 30-day extension would fall on May 1. Senator Bill Hagerty, Republican of Tennessee, on Tuesday appeared to suggest that such an extension would not be necessary.

“This is going to be over soon,” he said.

While home during a two-week recess, some Republicans said they had heard concerns from their constituents about the conflict, which has sent oil prices above $100 per barrel, natural gas costs rising more than 80% and fertilizer prices surging, raising costs for farmers.

Wednesday’s vote was forced by Senator Tammy Duckworth, Democrat of Illinois, who argued that the war was the latest demonstration of the president reneging on promises he made during his 2024 campaign.

“It’s clear that none of this is making America safer, bringing prices down or ending wars like he promised,” Duckworth said in a statement ahead of the vote. “Americans are sick and tired of being lied to, and Republicans cannot continue to sit by and abdicate their responsibilities as Trump continues to spiral out of control at the expense of our national security.”

Democrats’ Bet

Democrats hope that mounting Republican frustration will eventually pull the party asunder, yielding enough defections for a handful to join them in delivering a rebuke of the president.

“I have not seen, in a long time, the level of frustration,” Senator Chuck Schumer, Democrat of New York and the minority leader, said in an interview last week. “There’s always been Republican frustration with Trump, but the frustration is sort of peaking.”

Senator Tommy Tuberville, Republican of Alabama, said he held events across his state in recent weeks and fielded questions from voters about the war. He said his response to concerned constituents was: “We just have to wait and see.”

Tuberville, who voted against the resolution, said: “I think we need to let the president of the United States handle this.”

In a recent address providing an update on the war, Trump said his administration was “on track to complete all of America’s military objectives shortly, very shortly.” He added that “we’re going to hit them extremely hard over the next two to three weeks.”

The United States and Iran have since agreed to a two-week ceasefire, while diplomatic talks between the two nations took place but ended with no resolution. Tensions have also risen as the United States has placed a blockade of vessels using Iran’s ports.

During that crucial period, Congress was out of session.

Now back in Washington, many Democrats and some Republicans have begun to press for additional information.

Hawley said that senators who do not sit on the Armed Services and Foreign Relations Committees — which have received a series of confidential briefings since the war began — have been kept in the dark, noting that he and others “have not been briefed since the first week of March.”

“I would welcome more,” Hawley added.

The New York Times

World

Macron, Starmer Rally Allies to Mull Hormuz Mission

The leaders of Germany, Britain and France are expected to be present. Stefan Rousseau / POOL/AFP
The leaders of Germany, Britain and France are expected to be present. Stefan Rousseau / POOL/AFP
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Macron, Starmer Rally Allies to Mull Hormuz Mission

The leaders of Germany, Britain and France are expected to be present. Stefan Rousseau / POOL/AFP
The leaders of Germany, Britain and France are expected to be present. Stefan Rousseau / POOL/AFP

French President Emmanuel Macron and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Friday chair a meeting of allies to consider sending a multinational force to ensure security and free-flowing trade in the Strait of Hormuz once the current conflict between Iran and the US and Israel ends.

Iran imposed the blockade on the critical shipping bottleneck as soon as the US and Israel launched the war against the Iranian republic on February 28, leading to a surge in global energy prices. Even with a shaky ceasefire in place, the US is now imposing its own blockade on Iranian ports.

European leaders are now worried that if the blockade continues, consumers will feel the effects through higher inflation, food shortages and flight cancellations as jet fuel runs out, reported AFP.

The leaders joining Starmer and Macron from 1200 GMT for the meeting -- which will mostly be held via video -- are due to call for a return to full freedom of navigation and address the economic consequences of the blockade.

But they will also "prepare the deployment, when conditions are met, of a strictly defensive multinational military mission, in order to ensure freedom of navigation," according to the invitation sent by the Elysee which was seen by AFP.

Officials have emphasized that such a force would only be deployed when the war came to an end. Macron and Starmer have also led efforts to create a European force to support Ukraine, which again would only be deployed when the war against Russia ends.

Starmer is expected to tell the meeting that "the unconditional and immediate reopening" of the strait "is a global responsibility", his Downing Street office said in a statement.

Starmer is to say both he and Macron have a clear commitment "to establish a multinational initiative to protect freedom of navigation" to reassure commercial shipping and support mine clearance operations, it added.

A French presidential official, asking not to be named, said allies needed to be sure "we have an Iranian commitment not to fire on passing ships and a US commitment not to block any ships leaving or entering the Strait of Hormuz."

- 'Major consequences' -

The meeting, which is set to gather some 30 leaders of European countries but also Asian and Middle Eastern nations mainly by video conference, is also a chance for Europe to display its capacities after having largely been sidelined by the US in diplomatic efforts to end the war.

Key EU players German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni will be attending in person, their offices confirmed.

The talks according to the Elysee will involve "non belligerent countries" meaning that neither Iran, Israel nor the United States will be involved.

"The blockade of the Strait of Hormuz has major consequences for the global economy, and therefore for the daily lives of French citizens and French businesses," France's Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Thursday.

Downing Street said planning is already underway for a "combined military effort as soon as conditions allow". Military chiefs are due to meet next week for further discussions at the UK's military command headquarters in Northwood outside London, it added.

According to the French presidency, the meeting will also address concerns over the more than 20,000 seafarers aboard the hundreds of ships which have been trapped by the blockade.

"What we want to do is build a credible proposal which is essentially a third way between the maximum pressure previously practiced by the United States on Iran and the resumption of war," said the French presidential official.

Merz, whose country was initially reluctant to be involved in any mission for Ukraine, said Berlin was "willing in principle to take part" but cautioned that "we are still very far from that".

He also added the leaders would discuss the involvement of the United States. But the French presidential official said Washington -- as a belligerent power in the conflict -- should not be involved in this mission.

World

Helicopter Crash on Indonesia's Borneo Island Kills 8

Debris at the site of a helicopter crash in Sekadau regency, West Kalimantan province, Indonesia, April 16, 2026. Picture taken through a window. Indonesia's National Search and Rescue Agency (BASARNAS)/Handout via REUTERS
Debris at the site of a helicopter crash in Sekadau regency, West Kalimantan province, Indonesia, April 16, 2026. Picture taken through a window. Indonesia's National Search and Rescue Agency (BASARNAS)/Handout via REUTERS
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Helicopter Crash on Indonesia's Borneo Island Kills 8

Debris at the site of a helicopter crash in Sekadau regency, West Kalimantan province, Indonesia, April 16, 2026. Picture taken through a window. Indonesia's National Search and Rescue Agency (BASARNAS)/Handout via REUTERS
Debris at the site of a helicopter crash in Sekadau regency, West Kalimantan province, Indonesia, April 16, 2026. Picture taken through a window. Indonesia's National Search and Rescue Agency (BASARNAS)/Handout via REUTERS

A helicopter flying between palm oil plantations on Borneo Island crashed, killing the eight people on board, Indonesian officials said Friday.

The Airbus H130 owned by PT Matthew Air Nusantara lost contact Thursday, five minutes after it took off from Melawi district in West Kalimantan province.

It was on its way to another palm oil plantation in Kubu Raya district.

Searchers later located the wreckage and recovered the bodies of the two crew members and six passengers in the dense forests in Sekadau district, according to the National Search and Rescue Agency and the Transportation Ministry.

One of those killed was Malaysian, The Associated Press reported.

Indonesia, a sprawling archipelago of about 270 million people, has been plagued by transportation accidents, including plane and helicopter crashes and ferry sinkings.