Netanyahu’s rule to end as Israel opposition parties form coalition

Opposition leader says he will do ‘everything to unite Israeli society’ after years of political stalemate

Israel’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu could be ousted by opposition leader Yair Lapid this month after more than a decade in power (AFP)

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s 12 years in power is set to come to an end as his opponents say they have reached a coalition deal, paving the way to oust the veteran leader.

The eleventh-hour announcement by opposition leader Yair Lapid and his main coalition partner, right-wing politician Naftali Bennett, came just minutes before a midnight deadline, which if missed would have plunged the country into a fifth extraordinary election in just over two years.

Mr Lapid informed the country’s president Reuven Rivlin that he had made a coalition government comprised of his party’s Yesh Atid, Blue and White, Mr Bennett’s Yamina, Labor, Yisrael Beiteinu, New Hope, Meretz and a small Islamist party, the United Arab List.

The president’s statement said that a rotation deal had been agreed with Mr Bennett becoming prime minister first and Mr Lapid as alternate prime minister - after two years, they will switch.

“This government will work for all the citizens of Israel, those that voted for it and those that didn’t,” Mr Lapid said in a statement on Twitter.

“It will do everything to unite Israeli society.”

By being included in the deal, the United Arab List will become the first Arab party ever to be part of a governing coalition in Israel.

The agreement still needs to be approved by Israel’s parliament, the Knesset, in a vote that is expected to take place early next week.

If it goes through, Mr Lapid and his diverse array of partners, united only in their demand to have Mr Netanyahu removed from office, will end the record-setting 12-year rule of the current leader.

Dahlia Scheindlin, an Israel-based pollster and political analyst at The Century Foundation, told The Independent that Mr Netanyahu is expected to do everything he can to prevent the coalition taking power as he is desperate to remain in office while he fights three corruption trials.

Even if he is no longer prime minister, he can still remain a member of the Knesset.

“This is not a definite thing yet, but it is closer than ever. This is the biggest landmark change we have seen in 12 years,” Ms Scheindlin said.

“But there is still 12 days for the Knesset to swear them in. There is at least a week for something to happen and Netanyahu to try.

“He will spend the next 12 days trying to work out how to undermine and sabotage this government.”

Mr Netanyahu, nicknamed King Bibi and Mr Israel, has dominated Israeli politics over the last three decades - serving as prime minister since 2009 in addition to an earlier term in the late 1990s.

He has also simultaneously held other ministerial portfolios at different points.

The long-term leader has had a long list of political achievements, including last year’s groundbreaking diplomatic and normalisation deals with four Arab countries, as well as getting the US to move its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, thereby recognising the contested city as Israel’s capital.

However, he has become an increasingly polarising figure over the last few years, particularly since he was indicted on corruption charges across three cases.

Campaigning under the long shadow of the trials, he has failed to form a ruling coalition after four elections in just over 2 years, all of which were regarded as a referendum on his fitness to rule and all of which were inconclusive.

A unity government formed with his main rival Benny Gantz last year collapsed after just six months. Mr Gantz has now joined Mr Lapid and Mr Bennett’s coalition.

The new deal required a reshuffling of the Israeli political constellation. Three of the parties are led by hardline former Netanyahu allies who had personal feuds with him, while the United Arab List made history as a kingmaker, using its leverage to seek benefits for the country’s Arab minority.

“This is the first time an Arab party is a partner in the formation of a government,” the party’s leader, Mansour Abbas, told reporters.

“This agreement has a lot of things for the benefit of Arab society, and Israeli society in general.”

Anshel Pfeffer, an expert on Mr Netanyahu and author of his biography, said the situation was “still very far from over” as the coalition is going to face an uphill battle trying to get the confidence vote.

“They have a wafer thin majority which is very fragile, it has been thrown together very quickly and they will have Netanyahu breathing down their neck, who will try to bribe or threaten members,” he told The Independent.

However, Mr Pfeffer said if it does work the coalition may ultimately prove to be a positive step for Israel - even though it is a mismatch of vastly different parties.

This is because of the huge role that Mr Netanyahu played in the past, including holding multiple ministerial positions simultaneously.

“Israel is a parliamentary system, the prime minister is not supposed to be bigger than life. This is not a presidential system,” he said.

“It will be good for Israel to have a slightly less bombastic leader who continuously dominates the political atmosphere.”

Mr Netanyahu has attempted to put pressure on hardliners in the emerging coalition to defect and join his religious and nationalist allies. Knesset speaker Yariv Levin, a member of Mr Netanyahu’s Likud party, may also use his influence to delay the required parliamentary vote.

Mr Lapid has called on Mr Levin to convene the Knesset for the vote as soon as possible.

The 57-year-old opposition leader entered parliament in 2013 after a successful career as a newspaper columnist, TV anchor and author. His new Yesh Atid party ran a successful rookie campaign, landing Mr Lapid the powerful post of finance minister.

Nevertheless, he and Mr Netanyahu did not get along, and the coalition quickly crumbled, with Yesh Atid in the opposition since the 2015 elections.

The party is popular with secular, middle-class voters and has been critical of Mr Netanyahu’s close ties with ultra-Orthodox parties, arguing that the prime minister should step down while on trial for corruption charges.

Meanwhile, Mr Bennett is a former top aide to Mr Netanyahu whose small Yamina party caters to religious and nationalist hardliners. Mr Bennett was a successful high-tech entrepreneur and leader of the West Bank settler movement before entering politics.

Additional reporting by agencies