After their nationally televised press conference on Monday morning, during which they did not resign as expected, Bayit Yehudi ministers Naftali Bennet and Ayelet Shaked announced their disappointment with the government, their disapproval of Israel’s dealings with Hamas, but stated despite it all, they were not resigning.

In fact, they announced they are dropping any and all demands made of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, including Bennet’s ultimatum, that he be appointed defense minister to replace Avigdor Lieberman or he will quit and compel early elections.

Bennet leveled harsh criticism, that the government was more interested in surviving than it was in dealing with Hamas, and as such, it has compromised Israel security and deterrence. He added IDF soldiers are more scared of the IDF Chief Prosecutor than they are of Hamas, leading to harsh criticism from Attorney General Avichai Mandelblit.

Former Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman did not waste time in responding, slamming Bennet for attacking the IDF Chief Prosecutor, stating their statements had no connection to the security of the nation and now it is clear “Why there is no deterrence” and that they two are “simply stuck to their seats”, referring to their cabinet posts and their decision not to resign from the government and/or the coalition.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)