Minister of Transportation and Intelligence Yisrael Katz was the first to renounce Yedioth Ahronoth's front-page headline announcing a quiet rebellion in the Likud Party against its chairman, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

According to the Dec. 5 report, five leaders of the Likud discussed the possibility of uniting forces and calling on Netanyahu to resign in light of the criminal investigations that could hurt the party and lead to a loss in the next election.

Although Katz’s name was not mentioned in the report, he was considered the leader because of his unstable relationship with the prime minister and his ambition to vie for the leadership of the Likud on the day after Netanyahu’s era. Thus he hastened to distance himself from the report. Katz tweeted, “This morning I read a strange report of Likud leaders organizing against Prime Minister Netanyahu. It looks more like the author’s organizing against Likud leaders, or just lousy journalism. Such things never happened.” The tweet was disseminated by his people on the Likud’s WhatsApp groups, and Katz reinforced the message in interviews in the established media.

What’s interesting in this story is not the report itself, which seemed to portray a wish on the part of some Likud leaders as well as the media, but the quick response by Katz and other leaders who rushed to declare allegiance to Netanyahu. Minister of Social Equality Gila Gamliel was interviewed on the "Lifnei Hahadashot" ("Before the News") show on Reshet, and clarified that she is not part of any scheme. She emphasized that Netanyahu enjoys wide support from the party. Knesset member Miki Zohar delivered a similar message on the same show.