Likud leadership hopeful Gideon Saar last week announced he would not compete against Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu in the party’s primaries after the Central Committee voted to move up the elections in line with Mr. Netanyahu’s request.

After the decision, MK Moshe Feiglin, who also plans to challenge the prime minister for the party’s top slot, appealed to the Likud Court. The latter reversed the decision to move up the primary elections in a split decision. The party’s court issued its ruling on Monday morning 23 Kislev.

Feiglin called on the court to reverse the decision that placed the election on December 31, 2014, seeking to push the elections off to the original January date. The court invalidated the decision of the central committee to lock in a number of positions on the lineup as requested by Mr. Netanyahu.

It has been learned the three-justice panel was divided in the decision and therefore, in line with instructions from the party’s legal advisor, the court will hear the appeal again on Tuesday with a panel of five justices.

Central committee officials are quoted by Channel 10 News saying that if the court rules against them, they will appeal to the district court.

(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)