According to a report in the daily Haaretz, the deal signed between Iran and the P5 +1 has sparked a renewed effort towards establishing a national unity government. This effort is being spearheaded by President Reuven Rivlin, who has spoken out numerous times in favor of a unity government.
When asked to comment on the report that the president is conducting an unofficial shuttle diplomacy between Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and opposition leader Yitzchak Herzog, Herzog denied the accuracy of the report.
Speaking with Kol Chai Radio on Thursday morning 29 Tammuz, Zionist Camp (Labor party) MK Eitan Cabel explained that his party stands behind the prime minister regarding his opposition to the agreement signed with Iran but he dismisses reports of efforts to establish a national unity government. Cabel explained that there are issues, such as the Iranian threat, which demand crossing ideological barriers to unite but this does not mean his party agrees with the policies of PM Netanyahu, adding he is confident that Herzog would have prevented the signing of such a bad deal while the prime minister promised he would, but failed. Cabel chairs the Knesset Economic Affairs Committee.
Cabel blames PM Netanyahu for the current predicament, adding it is worrisome when staunch allies including Britain and Germany are not siding with Israel’s position in addition to the US of course.
A Knesset Channel poll shows that among Labor party voters, 73% are opposed to a unity government while only 13% favors such an arrangement. Among all participants in the poll, Labor affiliated and others, 53% are opposed and 24% in favor of national unity.
(YWN – Israel Desk, Jerusalem)
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One Response
One possible reason for the talk of a “unity” government, i.e., adding Labor to the slim governing coalition, is that some Israelis, in and out of the governing coalition, may believe that PM Netanyahu overplayed his hand in his kibbitzing in the P5+1/Iran negotiations. Did Bibi, or his supporters, really think he could stop the P5+1 coalition from striking a deal with Iran? Iran could have stopped the deal, but Israel and its politicians should accept the fact they there are serious limits to what they can accomplish by their diplomacy, and their threats.
Israel’s Middle East enemies do not fear war, as they are mostly autocracies who do not concern themselves with the safety and welfare of their populations. The best thing for the Israeli government to do now is remain vigilant and ready for war but stop the rhetoric that has alienated its Western allies.