It’s been a little over three weeks since the most recent Israeli elections, and despite the looming coronavirus crisis, there has been little progress in the forming of Israel’s government. While Israeli President Reuven Rivlin has issued a plea to political rivals Benjamin Netanyahu and Benny Gantz, heads of the Likud and Blue and White parties respectively, to come together for the good of the country, talk of a unity government has not translated into any meaningful progress in reality.
In the meantime, Gantz and his supporters from other parties have noted that they have enough votes to determine the next speaker of the Israeli Knesset, and are calling for a vote. This, however, is a shock to the system – until now, the position of speaker has only been put to the vote after the position of Prime Minister has been settled. With the Supreme Court intervening, accusations are being hurled in all directions.
To help you understand the positions more fully, HonestReporting head of community outreach, former Member of Knesset Dov Lipman, explains all.
