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Lieberman dismisses Jewish Home threat to quit government over peace talks
Yisrael Beitenu leader and Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman yesterday brushed off suggestions that Jewish Home could leave Israel’s coalition government if an agreement is reached to release Palestinian prisoners including Israeli Arab citizens, in order to continue peace talks with the Palestinian Authority (PA).
Earlier this month, a formula to continue negotiations beyond their nine-month deadline, which expires next week, was thought to be near completion. It was reported to have involved the release of a fourth tranche of Palestinian prisoners including 14 Arab citizens of Israel. At the time, Jewish Home leader Naftali Bennett said that should such a deal be concluded, his party “will withdraw from the government. Enough is enough. It will be a case of blackmail and capitulation to terror that we cannot accept.” Relations between Bennett and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have reportedly since been strained.
However, Lieberman, whose Yisrael Beitenu party is part of the same parliamentary faction as Netanyahu’s Likud, yesterday dismissed Bennett’s threat to quit. Speaking at a conference alongside the visiting Austrian Foreign Minister, Lieberman said “There is no chance Jewish Home will leave the coalition … I’m sure of it. There is no correlation between their declarations and the reality … I wouldn’t take our friend Naftali Bennett’s threats seriously.”
Underscoring the complex political pressures at play within Israel’s government, Channel Ten reported yesterday that Yesh Atid, the second largest party in government, would leave the coalition if peace talks come to an end. An unnamed party official played down the immediacy of the move though, saying “It is not as if we will leave the day after talks break down.” However, it is thought that Tzipi Livni’s Hatnua Party would follow suit should such a scenario play out.
Meanwhile, Labour Party leader Isaac Herzog yesterday implored Prime Minister Netanyahu to take the initiative over peace negotiations, commenting via social media, “The time has come for Netanyahu to decide if he wants a Jewish state or a bi-national state.”