Israel: The Likud Party firmly rejected Benny Gantz’s call for early elections next September
The Likud Party, led by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, announced on Wednesday evening its rejection of War Council Minister Benny Gantz’s proposal to hold early general elections next September.
The Likud party said in a statement, “At a fateful moment for Israel and in the midst of war, Gantz must stop engaging in a petty policy that he resorts to only because of the disintegration of his political alliance”.
On March 12, Gideon Sa’ar, head of the “New Hope” party, announced the end of his political partnership with Gantz and the dissolution of the “State Camp” alliance, leaving Sa’ar with his party’s 4 seats in the Israeli Knesset, leaving Gantz’s “Blue and White” party with 8 seats.
Likud claimed that holding elections now will inevitably lead to paralysis, division, damage to the fighting in the city of Rafah (south of the Gaza Strip), and serious harm to the chances of reaching a deal to release the kidnapped people (Israeli prisoners in Gaza)”.
The statement concluded, “The government will continue until all the goals of the war are achieved”.
For its part, the official Israeli Broadcasting Authority said that Netanyahu had previously informed Gantz, in their meeting on Wednesday, that he categorically refuses to early the elections.
However, the commission quoted a Blue and White party official as saying that Gantz, one of Netanyahu’s main political rivals, isn’t considering withdrawing from the government now after Netanyahu refused to early the elections.
Earlier Wednesday, Gantz called for early general elections in his country next September, one year before the start of the war on October 7, 2023.
Israel witnessed its last legislative elections on November 1, 2022, which resulted in the formation of a government headed by Netanyahu from the far religious and nationalist right in Israel, which international officials, including US President Joe Biden, described as “the most extreme” in Israel’s history.
With the outbreak of war against the Gaza Strip on October 7, Netanyahu’s government was expanded under the name “emergency government” and what was called the “war cabinet” was formed.
It’s assumed that if early elections aren’t held, the next elections will be held in October 2026.
Over the past few days, popular protests have escalated in Israel demanding the dissolution of Netanyahu’s government and holding early elections during the war.
A wide segment of Israelis holds Netanyahu personally responsible for failing to anticipate the Hamas attack on settlements and military bases in southern Israel on October 7, and for not returning the Israelis who were captured by Palestinian factions on the same day and transported to the Gaza Strip.
