Bennett and Lapid Team Up Against Netanyahu in Upcoming Elections

Two Israeli politicians have announced plans to merge their parties in an effort to unite the opposition against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Naftali Bennett, a right-wing former prime minister, and Yair Lapid, a centrist politician, will form a new party called Together, with Bennett as its leader.

The alliance aims to bring together fragmented opposition groups that share a common goal of ousting Netanyahu’s coalition government in the upcoming election. The parties have previously worked together before, but their efforts were short-lived. In 2021, they formed a coalition government that lasted only 18 months.

Bennett and Lapid have been vocal critics of Netanyahu’s handling of the country’s wars and security policies. Bennett has proposed establishing a national commission of inquiry into the failures leading up to the October 7, 2023 Hamas-led attack. Lapid has also criticized Netanyahu’s approach to the conflict, labeling the two-week ceasefire agreed with Iran as a “political disaster”.

The new party will be formed ahead of the expected election later this year. Polls have shown Bennett trailing Netanyahu in recent surveys, but he remains a top contender against the incumbent prime minister. Lapid’s party has seen significant losses in recent polls, securing only seven seats compared to its current 24.

Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, won re-election in November 2022 and formed the most right-wing government in Israeli history. However, his security credentials have been damaged by Hamas’s October 2023 attack on southern Israel, which led to a genocidal war against Palestinians in Gaza and attacks on neighboring countries.

Source: Al Jazeera