The idea of a government to replace Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has collapsed. Negotiating teams for Netanyahu's Likud party and Yamina resumed talks on Thursday evening to establish a government with Netanyahu as prime minister, Channel 12 News reported.
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In closed meetings, Yamina leader Naftali Bennett reported said that a government to replace Netanyahu in "the planned format" would not be able to cope with the state of civilian emergency in Israel's mixed cities. Bennett was referring to the key role that Ra'am leader Mansour Abbas was poised to play in the formation of said government.
"We need power, to send in the army, and arrests. Things that cannot be done when we depend on Mansour Abbas," Bennett said.
Bennett told Israel Hayom that during security emergencies, Israel needed a "broad government."
Officials close to Yamina's negotiating team told Israel Hayom that Yamina No. 2 Ayelet Shaked had not received the justice portfolio, and had therefore forced Bennett to capitulate. According to the officials, Bennett had agreed to a Likud offer to serve as defense minister, while Shaked would be appointed foreign minister. Yamina would also receive eight reserved places in the Likud top 40 slots in the next election, they said.
Bennett informed Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid, who currently has the mandate to form a government and was willing to allow Bennett to serve first in a two-year rotation for prime minister, of his intention to drop plans to form a government with Yesh Atid and the rest of the anti-Netanyahu factions only shortly before the move was made public.
"I understand the distress, but Bennett is making a mistake," Lapid said at a press conference Thursday night.
"You don't make change when it's convenient. Anyone who waits for the right time will discover that it never arrives. Change is made when you believe that it's the right thing to do. When you believe that your path is the right one," he said.
"I have no intention of giving up. I will continue to do everything to form a government in the next few weeks. There are still 20 days left in the mandate, and in political terms, that's an eternity. We will continue to fight and if we don't succeed, we will hold the most unnecessary and dangerous elections in the history of Israel, and we will win.
"This is the time, this time of chaos and threat, we need to form a government. The situation will not change if we don't change it," Lapid said.
Meanwhile, the Likud welcomed Bennett back.
"I congratulate Naftali Bennett for taking the option of a dangerous left-wing government off the table," said Likud faction chairman Miki Zohar, adding that Bennett had demonstrated "responsibility and leadership."
"This is the time for the entire right-wing camp to unite and form a national government that will protect the citizens of Israel and the soldiers of the IDF. I call on [New Hope leader] Gideon Sa'ar – come and form a right-wing government. Today," Zohar said.
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