The Wall Street Journal says that Israel may get a new government, but it won’t see a left turn, and it also says that this government will defy ratings and will most likely be led by a religious-nationalist prime minister backed by a centrist deal-maker backed by Arab and left-wing parties.
The newspaper pointed out in an editorial that American liberals would certainly celebrate the departure of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who symbolized the rift between the American Democratic Party and Israel over the past decade, but it would be a mistake to interpret this as a rejection of Israel’s right-wing political and security direction, which is likely to be maintained by the new government. Read also The end of the Netanyahu era is a possibility in the Israeli political drama Get to know my rivals Netanyahu, Yair Lapid and Naftali Bennett New negotiations to form a new Israeli government .. Where does Netanyahu stand? Lapid’s assignment to form a government complicates the political scene in Israel
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Settlement leader Bennett
The newspaper said that Bennett is the settlement leader for a long time, and he explicitly rejects the two-state solution, and urges tougher military measures against the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), and that giving up any land during his tenure would be impossible.
As for Lapid, says the Wall Street Journal, he classifies himself as a centrist, and speaks with a tone of less hatred for American liberals, especially secular American Jews who have been disappointed with the stalled peace process. He also focused his election campaign not on reviving the “land for peace” framework, but on fatigue Netanyahu has been sentenced for 12 consecutive years and convicted of corruption charges, which
Meanwhile, former General Benny Gantz is the current defense minister and will occupy an important position in the security cabinet of the new government, and he is known as a hawk and critic of the nuclear deal with Iran.
Lieberman supports the new government
The newspaper adds to clarify that Israel’s policy will not change, as the new government enjoys the support of Avigdor Lieberman, a former security ally of Netanyahu and a critic of the peace process, who has become frustrated with Netanyahu’s religious audience.
The newspaper goes on to say that the ouster of Netanyahu, if it occurs, will not be because the public has turned against hard-line security policy, but because the conservative bloc has grown so large that it has been divided, and Lapid was able to lure Bennett away from Netanyahu with his promise of the premiership.
Wall Street continues to predict that if Netanyahu is expelled, the political system in Israel will have a chance to reset the new reality that Netanyahu himself has created with Israel in a better strategic position than ever before.
And she concludes that the new government may be able to refer to the participation of Arab parties for the first time to highlight the multi-ethnic Israeli democracy, and Lapid may be an effective ambassador to the American liberals. It is possible that new elections will take place soon.