With less than a week until the time limit expires for Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu to establish a coalition government, it is reported that he has reached agreement in principle with the chairman of the Yisrael Beitenu party, MK Avigdor Lieberman, regarding the latter’s demands to serve as minister of defense.

Considerable progress has reportedly been made in talks with Lieberman, who apparently will once again serve as defense minister and this time, according to reports, the prime minister will give him a free hand to deal with Hamas in Gaza as he sees fit. In the last Knesset, Lieberman resigned as defense minister, explaining his disagreement with Netanyahu’s policies vis-à-vis Hamas, adding that the prime minister has tied his hands, unwilling to permit him to deal with Hamas as he sees fit.

Lieberman appears to not be wasting time, and according to reports, with permission of Netanyahu, he met on Wednesday with IDF Chief of Staff Lt.-General Aviv Kochavi. This lends additional credibility to reports that the prime minister and Lieberman have hammered out differences and Lieberman will serve as defense minister.

Yisrael Beitenu has five seats in the current Knesset, and as such, it will once again take control of the Immigration & Absorption portfolio. This will go to the party’s number 2 man, MK Oded Forer, who in the past has served as director-general of the same ministry.

There is reportedly progress on the issue of religion and state as well. On Wednesday, Likud chief negotiator Yariv Levin met with Shas MK Ariel Atias, MK (Yahadut Hatorah) Uri Maklev, and Shirya Demasky, representing the United Right-Wing, to discuss religion and state and it was decided the religious status quo would be maintained.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)