Israel’s prime minister loses grip on own party
With one Knesset member declared rebel and another one quitting the coalition, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett might soon find himself without a party at all.
During a meeting with his Yamina faction in the Knesset May 9, Prime Minister Naftali Bennett tried to relay a sense of optimism. He wanted to get the message across that everything was under control, now that the Knesset has returned from its spring recess. He did this even as all signs seem to indicate that the current Knesset will be dissolved before long.
With the coalition’s shaky situation looming in the background, the prime minister’s brief statement to his party was sent directly to the media. In it, he said, “The lack of political stability is unhealthy for the country. We all need to right the ship and show responsibility.” Bennett then continued, “We are now in the midst of a significant wave of terrorism, so we must stand united as we confront our enemies. It is, therefore, incumbent upon us to keep the coalition intact. The alternative is to go back to what we had a year ago, and that would be terrible. Remember where we were a year ago, during Operation Guardian of the Walls. We were a divided nation.”
