On Jan. 29, Finance Minister Yair Lapid and Justice Minister Tzipi Livni approached Chairman of the Opposition Isaac Herzog while he was standing at the door of the Knesset assembly hall, and a light and noncommittal conversation developed among the three. As expected, the sight of the three heads of the center-left parties whispering and laughing together generated some interest among the Knesset members and ministers who passed by, trying to catch a telling sentence. After all, the Israeli political system demonstrates nervous signs these days, as the date of the announcement of US Secretary of State John Kerry’s document approaches. Every nuance has a meaning.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu can rest easy. A peace coalition to threaten his rule hasn’t been created under his nose. At the high point in the conversation, Herzog teased the two, wondering if they came over to talk to him just to scare Bibi (Netanyahu). If you really want to scare him, Herzog told them, you have to leave the government. But Herzog has been in politics long enough to know that quite a long time might pass while the diplomatic process comes alive, until the champions of negotiations with the Palestinians in the Netanyahu government would threaten to leave due to lack of diplomatic progress.
