JNS
The Nov. 1 elections are “an opportunity that can’t be missed to get out of this entanglement” and establish a broad, stable government, says the Israeli prime minister.
In an apparent about-face, Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid on Wednesday ruled out the possibility of forming a coalition with the far-right Otzma Yehudit and Islamist Ra’am parties for the Nov. 1 elections.
Speaking at the start of a faction meeting of his Yesh Atid Party, Lapid said, “These elections were forced on us, but they can be an opportunity that won’t repeat itself to get out of this entanglement, and to set up a national, broad, stable government, without extremists,” according to Channel 12.
According to the report, Lapid was referring to Otzma Yehudit, headed by MK Itamar Ben-Gvir, and Ra’am, headed by Mansour Abbas.
The report noted that this statement represents a change from Lapid’s position in the March 2021 elections, when he said that Ra’am represented Israel’s Arabs and that he was thus prepared to cooperate with it.
Filename: F210621OF60.jpg
Caption: Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid with head of the Ra'am Party, Mansour Abbas, in the Knesset assembly hall on June 21, 2021.
Photo by Olivier Fitoussi/Flash90.
