Gantz promises chaos and confusion in Israel for next six weeks
Benny Gantz’s decision to do a deal with the Joint List to influence President Rivlin into giving Gantz first bite at forming Israel’s next Government is reprehensible, unconscionable and against Israel’s national interest.
Gantz’ decision allows the Joint List with just 15 of the 120 seats in the Knesset and 12.67% of the vote at the recent elections to sow discord and create confusion over the next six weeks as they plot with Gantz to overthrow Netanyahu – Israel’s longest-serving Prime Minister.
Ahmad Tibi – leader of Ta’al – one of the four parties making up the Joint List – told Israel’s President Reuven Rivlin last September:
“Some people think we are the backyard of the State of Israel, we are not a backyard, we are not present absentees, we are not guests, we are the owners of this land. Not residents of this country, we did not immigrate here, we were born here, we are a native population, and this native population sent us to make a change.”
“Owners of this land”?
Gantz’s new partner was making it crystal clear to Israel’s President that Israel was not recognized by Tibi’s party as the Jewish National Home reconstituted after 3000 years by and with the unanimous resolution of all 51 member states that comprised the League of Nations and endorsed the Mandate for Palestine.
Balad – the second party included in the Joint List and now in partnership with Gantz – had a former MK Said Nafa among its ranks. Nafa was convicted of maintaining contact with a foreign intelligence operative and spent time in prison. Another former Balad Knesset member, Basel Ghattas, was convicted of smuggling cellphones to Palestinian prisoners in an Israeli jail, an offence for which he too was convicted and imprisoned.
Spokesperson for the Joint list is Ayman Odeh – the head of Hadash – the third party in Joint List.
Odeh stated on 5 March 2020:
“Right now, with Gantz’s attitude [in favour] of a Jewish majority and unilateral annexation, we have no one to recommend to the president. If there is a change after the elections in the direction of peace and equality, we will weigh our position again.”
Gantz has apparently capitulated to Odeh’s demands just 11 days later.
Vice President of the fourth party in the Joint List – Mansour Abbas – has declared:
“Of course, we are against the Zionist movement. However, from a pragmatic perspective, we are ready for a compromise between the Zionist movement and Palestinians”
A Netanyahu-Gantz-Liberman Government of National Unity comprising 105 Knesset members was indicated by the election results – Netanyahu’s Likud party having secured 238,882 extra votes and 4 extra seats whilst Gantz’s Blue and White Party only secured 69,167 extra votes and no extra seats.
Instead – Gantz and his Blue and White colleagues Moshe Ya’alon and Yair Lapid – together with Yisrael Beitenu leader Avigdor Liberman – have jumped into bed with the Joint List to realize their common objective: all hate Netanyahu for a variety of personal reasons and want to see his political career ended.
Odeh had called for Gantz to form a minority Government with support of the Joint List in October 2019 – saying that even if it would quickly fall, such a “courageous” move would be worth it for the single purpose of ousting Benjamin Netanyahu as prime minister.
Gantz has now taken the bait – to his eternal shame.
Israel now faces six weeks of political chaos and confusion as Gantz and his 45 Netanyahu-hating coalition partners cosy up to and embrace 15 Joint List Knesset members who revile them, Netanyahu and the Jewish State.
David Singer is a Sydney lawyer and foundation member of the International Analysts Network
Author’s note: The cartoon – commissioned exclusively for this article—is by Yaakov Kirschen aka “Dry Bones”- one of Israel’s foremost political and social commentators – whose cartoons have graced the columns of Israeli and international media publications for decades. His cartoons can be viewed at Drybonesblog
A deal with joint list (Arabs also citizens) plus with the Jewish right too. That is how coalitions work.
This is a very one sided piece of news commentary. It is not reporting of the latest news.
Larry
Could you please elaborate on what particularly troubles you? Am happy to respond when you do.
The Egoism is the problem with Netanyahu pinned down by his court case and Gantz intoxicated with the hope of power .
Thankfully behind the scenes some of the MKs in the Blue and White could for national unity go to Likud and some of its allies .
The 105 member government of National Unity would still have to decide on the rotations for premier -Netanyahu could offer six months for himself – his court case has been delayed anyway -then Gantz for a year .
There are two other major issue Netanyahu and Gantz would have to agree on:
1. The restoration of Jewish sovereignty in part of Judea and Samaria after 3000 years as set out in the Trump Plan.
Netanyahu wants that to happen immediately. Gantz only wants it to happen when the Arab States and the international community agree – which could well be never.
2. The inclusion or exclusion of the 15 member Arab bloc and the 7 member Yisrael Beiteinu Party in any Government of National Unity.
Netanyahu would want to exclude them both. Gantz would want to include the Arab bloc and possibly Yisrael Beiteinu.
Actually, Ahmed Tibi and most of the people whom he claims to represent are not even remotely “indigenous” to The Land of Israel. A proportion of them is descended from settler-colonialists who invaded The Land of Israel in the 7th century CE.
Another sector consists of Arabs and other Moslems who infiltrated illegally into The Land of Israel during the Ottoman and British Mandatory eras.
Also present among them are descendants of Jews and Christians who were forcibly converted to Islam following the Arab conquest.