Lapid says he will never join Netanyahu’s government

Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid said on Monday that his party will not join Benjamin Netanyahu’s government as this would not save the country, local media have reported.

“It’s either a dictatorship or fighting the dictatorship with determination,” the leader of Yesh Atid told Ynet News. “I believe that most Israelis have values, and therefore we cannot say that we are giving up on them for political unity. Israelis have democratic instincts. We are not Hungary or Poland. We have seen this on the streets for the past 30 weeks.”

Walla news site reported yesterday that opposition leaders Lapid and Benny Gantz, the head of National Unity, have ruled out any potential participation in Netanyahu’s government even if this should lead to normalisation with Saudi Arabia. They would, however, support such normalisation from outside the government.

“We will not enter a Netanyahu government. If there is a deal with Saudi Arabia that represents Israel’s security interests, we will back it from the outside,” a source close to Lapid was quoted as saying.

Ynet News reported that when Lapid was asked about the possibility of joining the government with Netanyahu, he replied, “Not while Netanyahu is there. I am the first one who would set up a coalition with Likud, but it’s impossible with Netanyahu.”

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