Netanyahu’s coalition in Israel survives for now
Hawkish partner backs down from threat to defect
JERUSALEM — The government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel appeared to have averted collapse on Monday — at least for now — after a hawkish coalition partner backed down from a threat to defect, which probably would have forced early elections.
Mr. Netanyahu’s rightwing and religious coalition, led by his conservative Likud party, was weakened by the resignation last week of the hard-line defense minister, Avigdor Lieberman, and the withdrawal of his party, Yisrael Beiteinu, leaving the government with a parliamentary majority of just one.
The Jewish Home party and its leader, Naftali Bennett, had threatened to leave the coalition, too, which would have left the government without a majority. But on Monday, in a sharp turnaround, the party retreated.
With elections due in November 2019, the remaining coalition partners are already in campaign mode and experts said the brittle government was unlikely to last more than a few months.
This latest political crisis was precipitated by sharp disagreements within the governing parties, ostensibly over the handling of the latest conflict in Gaza. Critics said that the rebellious lawmakers were more concerned about positioning themselves with voters for the next elections.
Mr. Netanyahu rebuked the disaffected ministers in a televised address on Sunday, accusing them of putting personal and political considerations before the country’s interests and saying it would be “irresponsible” to topple the government at such a complex time for national security.
The volatile situation along the Gaza border remains a challenge for the government, as does the northern border, where Israel is grappling what it sees as a graver threat of Iranian entrenchment in Syria.
Other factors that could further destabilize the government in the coming weeks and months include contentious legislation on the agenda, such as a revised law on how the military draft applies to ultra-Orthodox men.
President Donald Trump is expected to present his long-awaited Israeli-Palestinian peace plan which could prove awkward for Mr. Netanyahu and his coalition partners if it demands difficult Israeli concessions, particularly regarding Jerusalem. Mr. Netanyahu is heavily invested in his close relationship with the Trump administration, which recognized Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and moved the United States embassy from Tel Aviv to the contested holy city.
And Mr. Netanyahu, plagued by corruption investigations, faces possible bribery charges. The attorney general is expected to decide if the prime minister should be indicted in several graft cases, subject to a hearing, perhaps by early next year.
Reuven Hazan, a professor of political science at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, said a government with 61 seats in the 120-seat Knesset, or Parliament, can survive, as it did for a year after the 2015 elections.
“But we are in an election year,” Mr. Hazan said. “That means some legislators know they have no chance of returning to the Knesset and are more independent.”
Mr. Netanyahu has threatened to break up the government in the past but wanted to preserve it for now, Mr. Hazan said, as he did not want to go to elections over Gaza or with his coalition partners determining the timing.
“In the months to come, it will be the draft law or something else,” he added. “Netanyahu will find a reason and break up the government, but he will decide when and on what basis.”
The political drama had been building over several days, leading some commentators to describe Monday’s turn of events as an anticlimax.