Associates of the prime minister seek to reassure coalition partners after a report that PM Netanyahu threatened to call an election over the budget dispute. Meanwhile, the bloated emergency government is making it harder for the government to function, ministers say.
The straw breaking Netanyahu's back is the sovereignty issue, which now appears to be slipping through his fingers as he wages a last-ditch effort to salvage something of the historic initiative.
From the outset, Benny Gantz's sovereignty vision has been negligible in scope. Now that he wants to postpone the initiative until "after corona," the rift is another source of acrimony in a coalition that cannot stop fighting.
Likud insider warns tensions with Blue and White growing, says unity government may not live out the winter session. Poll by Channel 13 News finds that were elections held at this time, Likud would win 38 seats, Blue and White would shrink to nine mandates.
This is a critical week, not just for the settlement enterprise but for the political system. If the Americans demand Blue and White's cooperation as a condition for green-lighting the sovereignty initiative, the government will instantly become a pressure cooker.
"Israel is considered a leading power in the field of cybersecurity."
Defense Minister Benny Gantz says any version of applying Israeli law to parts of Judea and Samaria and the Jordan Valley must be thoroughly scrutinized. Israeli ambassador to the US: applying Israeli sovereignty will create a realistic two-state solution.
Opposition Leader Yair Lapid: "Blue and White's demand for a two-year budget in a reality of the coronavirus pandemic is either amateurism or irresponsibility."
PM Netanyahu’s hesitation about applying Israeli law to Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria and the Jordan Valley is clearly a product of the immense pressure he is under from every direction to shelve President Trump’s Middle East peace plan.
Normalizing ties with Israel is just as important for the Arab world as it is to us. The Right would also be wise to be less audacious vis-à-vis US President Trump, who has proved to be a vital ally.
