The Israeli government collapsed on Tuesday at midnight local time after the country’s parliament failed to meet a deadline for passage of the 2020 and 2021 budgets.
Israel will now head to its fourth elections in two years, likely on March 23 next year.
Rightwing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his coalition partner, Blue and White leader Benny Gantz, blamed each other for the collapse of their seven-month-old government.
Netanyahu is a symptom, not the cause of #Israel's political crisis | Article by: @RamzyBaroud https://t.co/h9qmhoCcrV
— Middle East Monitor (@MiddleEastMnt) December 22, 2020
“Blue and White withdrew from the agreements and dragged us to unnecessary elections during the corona crisis,” Netanyahu said.
“We do not want an election and we voted against it … but we are not afraid of elections — because we will win!”
On the other hand, Gantz said:
“I regret that the Prime Minister is preoccupied with his (corruption) trial and not the public interest, and is prepared to drag the entire country into a period of uncertainty, instead of ensuring economic stability and a rehabilitation of the economy.”
After three inconclusive elections Gantz had agreed to join Netanyahu in April, in what was described as an “emergency” coalition government.
The King’s Man: #Blinken’s Appointment Reassures #Israel that Little Will Change under #Biden https://t.co/t7ejgH531M via @PalestineChron pic.twitter.com/tsc702BbVB
— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) December 22, 2020
Opinion polls suggest Netanyahu’s Likud party is again on track to win the most Knesset seats in the next election.
This time around, his biggest rivals would appear to come from other right-wing parties, which have been gaining ground on Israel’s longest serving leader.
(CNN, Palestine Chronicle, Social Media)
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