JERUSALEM

An Israeli soldier who threatened mutiny was arrested Sunday, Israeli media reported.

The masked reservist soldier was seen in a video doing the rounds on social media demanding Defense Minister Yoav Gallant resign.

“The individual in the mutiny video served as a reserve soldier, and an investigation is underway to determine whether the video was filmed during his military service,” the official Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation reported citing an unnamed source.

Israel daily Yedioth Ahronoth quoted the niece of the soldier as saying: "He is my uncle, and he has been in the reserve since October 7. He spoke the truth that he served with the rank of reserve soldier."

She refuted the reports in Israeli media suggesting that the entire incident was merely a "stunt" and that the individual in the video was not a soldier, implying that someone else was manipulating him.

“No one directed him, and he is certainly not an actor. The weapon seen in the video was indeed his own, and he did not borrow it from anyone,” she said.

On Saturday, a masked Israeli soldier claiming to be serving in the Gaza Strip appeared in a video threatening a widespread military rebellion if Gallant decided to bring the Palestinian Authority into Gaza or withdraw from the Strip.

For months, a seeming disagreement between Gallant and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the future governance of Gaza has been emerging.

In his recent statement, Gallant cautioned against the consequences of Israel's shift towards implementing military rule in Gaza.

He advocated for seeking a Palestinian alternative to Hamas that would garner Arab approval. However, his stance sparked fierce criticism from extremist ministers within the government, who called for his resignation.

Israel continues its brutal offensive on Gaza despite a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire.

Over 35,900 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, the vast majority being women and children, and over 80,400 others injured since October following an attack by Hamas.

More than seven months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.

Israel is accused of “genocide” at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which in its latest ruling has ordered Tel Aviv to immediately halt its operation in Rafah, a city in southern Gaza where more than a million displaced Palestinians had sought refuge.

*Writing by Ikram Kouachi