Race to form coalition as midnight deadline looms to oust Netanyahu

Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid, a secular centrist, has been locked in talks with religious nationalist Naftali Bennett on the terms of a ‘change alliance.’ (File/AFP)

• Islamist party leader holds key to opposition majority in Israeli parliament

JEDDAH: Opposition politicians in Israel face a deadline of midnight on Wednesday to form a “change” coalition and oust Benjamin Netanyahu as prime minister.
The new alliance is being led by former TV presenter Yair Lapid, the secular centrist head of the Yesh Atid party, and right-wing religious nationalist Naftali Bennett, the tech multimillionaire who leads the Yamina party.
Lapid has agreed to allow Bennett to serve first as a rotating prime minister in a power-sharing agreement, before taking over halfway through their term.
The two men are racing to cobble together a disparate coalition of political groups from across the Israeli political and ideological spectrum, who are united on only one issue — distaste for Netanyahu.
In addition, the Knesset arithmetic dictates that to reach a 61-seat majority in the 120-seat parliament, the new coalition will almost certainly have to include Raam, the conservative Islamist party led by Mansour Abbas.
Political analyst Afif Abu Much said on Tuesday that Abbas would not seek ministerial posts, but wanted chairmanship of two parliamentary committees and budgets for Arab communities.
He also aimed to revoke a law that increased penalties for illegal construction, which has had a disproportionate impact on Arab communities. “They don’t want to be part of the government,” Abu Much said. “What they want is to be the address of the Arab people in Israel.”
Abbas said on Tuesday that coalition talks appeared to be heading “in a good direction,” but he added: “Until it’s finished, nothing is finished.”
While the numbers appear to be against Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-serving prime minister is a skilled political operator who has survived numerous challenges during 12 consecutive years in office, and analysts cautioned against writing him off. Political scientist Jonathan Rynhold said his opponents had a strong hand but Netanyahu was “the best card player by miles.”