'A gift to Israel': Liberman calls for elections for first time since October 7

Yisrael Beytenu chairman MK Avigdor Liberman called for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to step down and for the country to head to an election, in an interview on Sunday on Army Radio.

In recent months, he has opposed an election due to what he argued would be its negative effect on the war effort; his comments on Sunday were the first time he joined his fellow opposition parties in calling for an election.

Liberman attributed his change of opinion to public feuds over the past between Netanyahu, Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and Minister-without-Portfolio Benny Gantz, all members of the war cabinet.

“When three members of the [war] cabinet act against each other, there is no chance to make any moves, and the slogan ‘together we will win’ is just a slogan,” Liberman said.

A public drama between gov't officials

Liberman referred to public comments by Gallant on Wednesday, a response by Netanyahu on Thursday, and a spat between Gantz and Netanyahu over the weekend over the former’s trip to the US.

Gallant on Wednesday said he wouldn’t support a solution to the problem of the haredi  (ultra-Orthodox) exemption from IDF service unless that solution garnered support from all members of the emergency coalition – including Gantz.

Netanyahu said in response on Thursday that “total agreement only existed in North Korea,” and that Gallant was trying to lead to an election – which the prime minister said would be a “gift” to Hamas and would lead to Israel’s defeat in the war.

On Friday, Gantz informed Netanyahu that he was planning a trip to the US and the UK and would meet, among others, with US Vice President Kamala Harris. Netanyahu reportedly opposed the trip because “there is only one prime minister,” and directed Mike Herzog, Israeli ambassador to the US, not to attend Gantz’s meetings.

The level of distrust and political maneuvering meant that “the government exhausted its potential,” and it was time for elections, Liberman said. He added that it would not be a gift to Hamas, but rather a “gift to Israel.”

While Netanyahu did not criticize Gantz directly, two Likud ministers who are considered close allies of the prime minister, David Amsalem, who is a minister in the Justice Ministry, regional cooperation minister, and ministerial liaison to the Knesset, as well as Transportation Minister Miri Regev, voiced their criticism publicly.

In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Amsalem wrote, “Mr. Gantz, your entry into the government was to create unity in a time of emergency, and not to be a Trojan horse. Your trip this morning was in total violation of government protocol.” Amsalem further accused Gantz of colluding to “lead a process of a Palestinian state and stopping the fighting in Gaza.”

Regev criticized both Gallant and Gantz in an interview with Army Radio, calling Gallant’s statement “unnecessary,” since talks were ongoing between the haredi parties and the other coalition parties on the issue of haredi IDF service. Regev added that Gantz should not have traveled to the US against Netanyahu’s wishes during such a “sensitive time” of negotiations over a hostage deal.