Only future historians will be able to judge whether the Israeli government and the Palestinian Authority's deliberate avoidance of consequential negotiations to resolve the conflict between the two nations was a tragedy that would affect generations or a successful political wink, which for the time being prevented the outbreak of another intifada.
Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram
The outgoing government was established with the understanding not to renew the negotiations, which ended in 2009, an agreement that for left-wing members of the coalition was almost too difficult to bear.
All Meretz ministers shunned a part of themselves because they honored their promise to put the future of the Bennett-Lapid government above the demand of Israeli-Palestinian negotiations. With the elections campaigns in full swing, Labor and Meretz activists have adopted a slogan inspired by David Ben-Gurion.
When Britain capped the number of Jews allowed to immigrate to pre-state Israel, but kept fiercely fighting Nazi Germany, he said, We will fight the White Paper as if there is no Germany and support England against Germany as if there is no White Paper. Brilliant, but impractical, as the passivity of the Jewish settlement in Israel proved during the war.
Leftist public figures speak of the need to fight the return of Benjamin Netanyahu to power as if there is no Palestinian problem, and to strive for an agreement with the Palestinians as if there are no criminal charges against Bibi. Again: brilliant, but impractical. The Bennett-Lapid government was more efficient than its predecessor, and the practical (albeit challenging) goal is to garner the necessary majority at the ballot box to continue on the path it set.
As such, I propose that coalition parties immediately appear before the public and announce that they constitute an ad hoc confederation of factions uniting into one block under several banners: to legally pledge never to join a government headed by Netanyahu; To launch a thorough campaign detailing the former prime minister's failure in fighting the Iranian nuclear project, causing a major rift in ties with the US Democrat administration, with Jordan, and above all – the criminal accusations against him; To praise the work and platforms of the confederation parties hoping to form the next government, and not to criticize and be dragged into a public conflict with them; And if Netanyahu retires from politics, each of these parties will be exempts from the obligations. The Likud itself is a worthy partner in a government, only without Netanyahu as its leader.
When such a confederation is established, the prevailing sense of helplessness in the electoral process will disappear, as support for Bibi is not a constant.
May someone have the courage for such a move.
Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!
