Bennett attack on Bibi may herald coalition changes

THE INK on the new coalition agreement appointing Avigdor Lieberman as defenceministerandbringinghisparty into government had barely dried last week when a new row began brewing.

Education Minister Naftali Bennett, leader of the right-wing Jewish Home Party, launched a series of attacks on the new diplomatic initiative being talked up by the Prime Minister and Mr Lieberman.

In a speech at a Jerusalem Day event on Sunday marking the 49th anniversary of the Six-Day War, Mr Bennett did not mention the Prime Minister by name, but it was clear to whom he was referring when he said “there are those who at home and abroad are joining various Arab initiatives, according to which we will divide the land, divide Jerusalem and go back to the 1967 borders, because the world is pressuring us”.

In another reference to Mr Netanyahu, he said: “You can’t be for the land of Israel in Hebrew while founding the state of Palestine in English”.

Likud sources in response attacked “Bennett’s campaign of hypocrisy”, pointing out that the Education Minister had already sat in a government with the Labour Party and Tzipi Livni, who was negotiating with the Palestinian Authority. The sources accused Mr Bennett of “threatening a wide rightwing government” just because he was jealous of his rival Mr Lieberman for being appointed defence minister.

Only two weeks ago, following the deal between Likud and Mr Lieberman, Zionist Union leader Isaac Herzog said that the “door has closed” on a coalition deal between the Prime Minister and his party. However, the increased tension with Mr Bennett may open the door again and, on Saturday, Mr Herzog said that things may be different “if Netanyahu parts with the far-right”.

Replacing Jewish Home with the Zionist Union would serve a number of objectives for the Prime Minister. Assuming that all the new party’s MKs join up, it would create a much larger coalition base. A party with only eight members would leave and 24 new MKs would arrive in their place.

Having Mr Herzog as the new foreign minister would allow Mr Netanyahu to present a more moderate government to the international community, and Mr Lieberman’s party, Yisrael Beiteinu, would provide right-wing balance.