Israel's opposition head Benny Gantz wins support to form government
Israeli political parties have backed the opposition leader, Benny Gantz, to form a government, in a shocking blow to Benjamin Netanyahu after he appeared to come out ahead in an election held earlier this month.
The dramatic news came as a Jerusalem court postponed the prime minister’s corruption trial due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Leaders of the main parties met Israel’s president, Reuven Rivlin, on Sunday, giving Gantz the slimmest advantage of 61 recommendations from of a total of 120 lawmakers.
The endorsement does not end Netanyahu’s chances or guarantee Gantz will lead Israel’s next administration. Before that can happen, he has up to six weeks of negotiations to forge a majority coalition in Israel’s parliament, the Knesset.
The success of that scenario remains far from certain. While Gantz will be officially picked by the president as prime minister-designate on Monday, some of the politicians who backed him on Sunday may not also agree to join his government.
Fifteen of the recommendations came from an alliance of Arab parties, who may have only supported Gantz to damage their political nemesis, Netanyahu. It remained unclear if the Joint List group, a merger of politicians predominantly representing Palestinian citizens of Israel, would join an administration led by Gantz, a former army chief with whom they have deep ideological differences.
Gantz also won support from former defence minister Avigdor Lieberman, who heads the far-right, ultranationalist Yisrael Beiteinu party. Lieberman has repeatedly stated he would never join a government with Arab legislators, complicating Gantz’s path to power.
The dramatic news came at the end of a day in which Netanyahu’s prospects appeared to be improving.
A Jerusalem court announced that the long-awaited first hearing for the prime minister’s corruption trial, scheduled for Tuesday, would be postponed until 24 May due to fears of the spread of the coronavirus in courthouses.
About 210 people have been infected in Israel, with no deaths. Battling the outbreak, Israel has already imposed a series of stringent restrictions nationwide during the past few days, including barring gatherings of more than 10 people and shutting down schools, hotels, cafes, restaurants, cinemas, theatres and malls.
The upcoming trial – in which Netanyahu faces damning charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust – had been hanging over the 70-year-old leader and was set to start right as political negotiations were to begin.
For a year, Israel has been in a state of political paralysis following three inconclusive elections, the latest of which was held on 2 March. In that time, both Netanyahu and Gantz have been picked to form governments and failed. Throughout the crisis, Netanyahu has remained interim prime minister.
With neither Netanyahu or Gantz commanding a majority of support, the president has urged them to agree on a power-sharing unity deal. He summoned them for an emergency meeting on Sunday night in the hopes of breaking the deadlock.
“We must establish a government as soon as possible that will lead our people at this complex time,” Rivlin said.
After months of acrimonious election campaigning, it is unclear if politicians will be able to break the stalemate.
In a clear attempt to block his rival, Gantz has pushed for legislation to bar anyone indicted for a crime from heading an administration.
Meanwhile, temporarily freed from his legal woes, Netanyahu has urged Gantz and other politicians to fall in line, arguing that the coronavirus outbreak meant the formation of an “emergency government … led by me” was all the more vital.
Under Israel’s current caretaker administration, the government is restricted in its ability to tackle any major crisis. For example, it cannot pass a budget.
Netanyahu said his proposed emergency government could last six months, or that he and Gantz could agree to a four-year unity administration. In that case, Netanyahu would remain prime minister for the next two years.
“The state of Israel needs it. The people of Israel expect it,” Netanyahu said.
Gantz accused the prime minister of manipulation during a public health scare. “When you get serious, we can talk,” he said.
Separately, in an opaque move that raised immediate privacy issues, Netanyahu announced on Saturday night that he intended to use technology developed for counter-terrorism to track people with the coronavirus digitally.
“Up until today I avoided using these measures in the civilian population but there is no choice,” Netanyahu said in a televised news conference.
The announcement, which needs further approval, prompted accusations of mass surveillance.
Noa Landau, who works for the progressive local Haaretz newspaper, wrote an article on Sunday against what she called the “politicisation of the health crisis”.
“Israel is already on the edge when it comes to violations of individual rights. The foundations of our system of government must not be undermined under the auspices of a viral outbreak,” she wrote. “This really is an emergency – over the protection of democracy.”
Q&A: Netanyahu corruption allegations
Israel’s attorney general, Avichai Mandelblit, indicted Netanyahu in November. It was the first time a sitting Israeli prime minister has been charged with a crime.
The 70-year-old leader, the longestserving in the small country’s history, could face more than a decade in prison if convicted. He faces three separate inquiries, including charges of bribery, fraud and breach of trust.
Case 1,000The first case, known as case 1,000, involves allegations of receiving gifts such as cigars, champagne and jewellery, from billionaires, including the Hollywood businessman Arnon Milchan and Australian casino operator James Packer, allegedly in exchange for favours. Milchan and Packer are not facing any charges.
Case 2,000In case 2,000, Netanyahu is accused of colluding with the country’s top-selling newspaper, Yedioth Ahronoth, to hurt its competition in exchange for favourable coverage.
Case 4,000
In the third and most serious case, case 4,000, the prime minister is accused of offering incentives worth close to £200m to the Israeli telecoms provider Bezeq in exchange for positive stories on an online news website it owns.
How has he responded?
Netanyahu has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing, alleging he is the victim of a politically-motivated witchhunt.
Is that it for his legal woes?
No. There was also a separate case not involving Netanyahu, but his wife, Sara, who was convicted in June of illegally misusing thousands of pounds of public funds for lavish meals, despite having an in-house cook provided by the state.
people come with cold symptoms, and they are afraid to say that they suspect it’s coronavirus,” said one operating in Cairo who declined to give his name. “Since there is no manual or information from the authorities on what to do if you are around someone with symptoms, lots of people just take doses of antibiotics, so they are stable for a couple of days. Then they get sick again.”
Adham
Youssef contributed reporting
major events, and asking people to stay away from Daegu. The start of a new school term has been delayed from 2 March to the 22nd. Emergency childcare in classes of no more than 10 is offered for those who must go to work. Home working has been encouraged, with subsidies for companies that offer employees the flexibility to manage new care responsibilities.
GPS maps, available online to the public, track the movements of anyone confirmed to have the virus. South Korea also screens passengers leaving the country.
Widespread testing meant a jump in confirmed cases, currently more than 7,800, but resulted in a very low mortality rate, below 1%. New daily cases are down from a peak two weeks ago, and on Friday the country reported more recoveries than new cases, for the first time since the outbreak began.
Taiwan
Despite its closeness to China, physically and in economic terms, Taiwan has had extraordinary success in controlling the coronavirus. Efforts may have been helped by the Sars experience, and the fact that the vice-president is an epidemiologist.
Taiwan was probably the first country to try to stop coronavirus spreading, bringing in checks on travellers from Wuhan at the end of December, after reports of a mystery, pneumonia-like illness.
A command centre for epidemics kicked into action in late January, producing new policies and monitoring virus-tracking and treatment efforts. Wider travel restrictions on people coming from mainland China were introduced despite the insistence of the World Health Organization (WHO) that they were not necessary. Extensive testing and contact-tracing through the public health system prevented the disease spreading.
School holidays were extended during late February, and schools can be closed again if cases emerge among students.
Singapore
Travel restrictions on people coming from mainland China were put in place, going beyond WHO advice. An exhaustive testing regime covered anyone with flu-like or pneumonia symptoms. All possible contacts of those infected were tracked, involving the police, flight manifests and a local test for antibodies that circulate after an infection clears.
Tests are free, and a huge public information campaign has urged even people with mild symptoms to see a doctor. The government covers medical bills for suspected or confirmed cases, so there are no financial risks to getting tested.
Self-employed people get a quarantine allowance, and employers are banned from deducting days in isolation from annual leave.
Measures can also be punitive, with one couple prosecuted for providing false travel history.
Most border crossings with mainland China have been closed, and people arriving from there must quarantine for 14 days.
Schools and universities closed in mid-January, and most remain shut, although a few private schools have partly reopened. Working from home has been encouraged where possible. Museums and sports facilities are shut, and people told to avoid large gatherings.
Those with strong memories of Sars have voluntarily stayed home when they can, and used masks and hand sanitiser when they have to go out.
The measures have also brought a drop in seasonal flu cases.