Israelis rally against Naftali Bennet

Jerusalem24 – Hundreds of supporters of the Israeli far-right and settlers demonstrated last night, Wednesday, in Jerusalem, calling for the resignation of the government coalition headed by Naftali Bennett.

The demonstration was attended by opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu and several Knesset members from the “Likud” and “Religious Zionism” parties, including Yisrael Katz, Bezalel Smotrich, and Itamar Ben Gvir.

The demonstration came hours after MK Idit Silman resigned from her Yamina party and the government coalition. This step was preceded by the defection of her colleague MK Amihai Shikli, who refused the government in its current form, which means that Naftali Bennett’s government lost its majority in the Knesset.

The leaders of the right-wing camp called for the overthrow of the Bennett government for its danger to the identity of the “Jewish state”.

In a speech during the demonstration, Netanyahu called for what he called “the unity of the Zionist national camp,” calling on members of the government coalition from the right-wing parties to “return to their ideological home… to return the State of Israel to the path of victory,” as he put it.

Hundreds of settlers and supporters of the extreme right rallied in front of the house of Knesset member from the “Yamina” party, Nir Auerbach, to demand his resignation from the government coalition.

The latest developments herald the return of the Israeli political arena to its predicament since the beginning of 2019 after Netanyahu failed to form a government following three Knesset elections, forcing the parties opposing him, called the “Change Bloc”, to agree on forming the current government despite the different positions between them. in the political, economic, and social fields.

After MK Idit Silman split from her Yamina party and the government coalition, the coalition lost the majority in the Knesset, with 60 members supporting it against 60 members opposed. Consequently, the scenarios have become open, either new elections following the overthrow of the government with a draft law of no confidence in it, or the formation of a new government by withholding confidence from the current one and the nomination of a Knesset member from the opposition, or the current government remaining in its mandate without the ability to enact laws and pass any budget.

It is noteworthy that the dissolution of the Knesset and the overthrow of the government requires the support of at least 61 Knesset members. In addition, the formation of a new government requires the support of at least 61 Knesset members.