Benny Gantz, a centrist member of Israel’s three-man war Cabinet, has announced his resignation, accusing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of mismanaging the war effort and putting his own “political survival” over the country’s security needs. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken meanwhile has returned to the Middle East to push for a cease-fire deal hanging in the balance after the rescue of four Israeli hostages in a military raid, and following Gantz's resignation.