On motzei Shabbos, Public Security Minister (Likud) Gilad Erdan told the news that he does not view Benny Gantz as being disqualified as a candidate to serve as Defense Minister, leading to a storm of responses, including from Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu.

Erdan explained that anyone willing to accept the guidelines of the right-wing government, is not disqualified to sit as a partner in the coalition. Erdan said, “Gantz has many merits to his credit in the sphere of security, and while he is not suited to be Prime Minister, we are not ruling them out to serve as defense minister.”

He added “the Prime Minister first plans to turn to the right-wing towards forming a coalition which will be similar to the one which exist today. After this, that there is a right-wing government, any party, including the Blue and White party is not ruled out as a potential partner, but on our terms and the remaining positions.”

Erdan later qualified his remarks on twitter, emphasizing that first Prime Minister Netanyahu will establish a coalition government with the right-wing parties, leading to a Likud-led right-wing coalition, and only then will the others be invited providing the willingness to accept the basic guidelines of the right-wing coalition.

His clarification on twitter however did not do much to calm the storm. The Prime Minister announced that Benny Gantz will not serve as a defense minister in his government.

“Benny Gantz who backed the dangerous agreement with Iran, who backs uprooting 90,000 settlers, who opposed the building the border fence that I constructed along the Egyptian border to halt the continued infiltration of illegals into Israel, who espouses lies against me and is responsible for the blood libel against me in the election campaign, will not be defense minister in my government,” said Netanyahu.

Responding to the Prime Minister’s comments, Gantz stated, “Netanyahu will not be minister in my government. He will lose the election and he will have to deal with the three indictments against him as well as dealing with the prosecution in the case that is being opened pertaining to the submarines.”

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)