Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s rivals yesterday sought to finalize a unity coalition that would unseat the veteran Israeli leader, but political commentators expect a bitter fight ahead.
Centrist opposition chief Yair Lapid secured support on Sunday from ultranationalist Naftali Bennett for a “change” government of ideologically disparate rivals.
The deal, in which Bennett would serve first as prime minister under a rotation with Lapid, must be finalized by a deadline of midnight tomorrow.
Photo: AFP
Netanyahu, 71, is the dominant political figure of his generation and his challengers have little in common — save a desire to emerge from his divisive shadow and from unprecedented turmoil that has seen four deadlocked elections in two years.
Hoping to discredit Bennett and other rightists now negotiating with Lapid, Netanyahu has cast them as committing “the fraud of the century” which would, he said, imperil Israel.
Lapid’s riposte was restrained.
“A week from now, the state of Israel can be in a new era. Suddenly it will be quieter. Ministers will go to work without inciting, without lying, without trying to instil fear all of the time,” he said in a televised address.
Though he described Bennett as “my friend, the prime minister-designate” and voiced hope of a deal before tomorrow, Lapid cautioned: “There are still plenty of obstacles in the way of the formation of the new government.”
Israelis were divided about everything except the folly of writing Netanyahu off.
“An event took place yesterday whose importance cannot be overstated. A real possibility was created ... an alternative government in every sense of the word,” Sima Kadmon wrote in the best-selling Israeli newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth.
However, “it’s not over yet,” she added. “Long days loom in which Netanyahu will do absolutely everything to shift the momentum.”
Netanyahu faces other troubles, chiefly a corruption trial for bribery, fraud and breach of trust. He denies all charges.
The veteran Likud Party leader is a survivor: He was first elected prime minister in 1996 and he returned to power in 2009, holding the top office for more than a decade.
Israel Hayom, a pro-Netanyahu newspaper, described Bennett and Gideon Saar, another rightist in talks with Lapid, as being “in service of the left.”
Netanyahu has kept the door open to them, saying he is still capable of forming the next government.
If Bennett and Lapid miss tomorrow’s deadline, parliament can choose a candidate to form a new coalition. Should that fail, the country goes to a fifth election.
However, a source briefed on the Bennett-Lapid power-sharing talks, which also include liberal and centre-left parties, said there had been “significant progress” toward a final deal, adding: “There’s a lot more that unites than separates.”
The government is aiming to recruit 1,096 foreign English teachers and teaching assistants this year, the Ministry of Education said yesterday. The foreign teachers would work closely with elementary and junior-high instructors to create and teach courses, ministry official Tsai Yi-ching (蔡宜靜) said. Together, they would create an immersive language environment, helping to motivate students while enhancing the skills of local teachers, she said. The ministry has since 2021 been recruiting foreign teachers through the Taiwan Foreign English Teacher Program, which offers placement, salary, housing and other benefits to eligible foreign teachers. Two centers serving northern and southern Taiwan assist in recruiting and training
WIDE NET: Health officials said they are considering all possibilities, such as bongkrekic acid, while the city mayor said they have not ruled out the possibility of a malicious act of poisoning Two people who dined at a restaurant in Taipei’s Far Eastern Department Store Xinyi A13 last week have died, while four are in intensive care, the Taipei Department of Health said yesterday. All of the outlets of Malaysian vegetarian restaurant franchise Polam Kopitiam have been ordered to close pending an investigation after 11 people became ill due to suspected food poisoning, city officials told a news conference in Taipei. The first fatality, a 39-year-old man who ate at the restaurant on Friday last week, died of kidney failure two days later at the city’s Mackay Memorial Hospital. A 66-year-old man who dined
EYE ON STRAIT: The US spending bill ‘doubles security cooperation funding for Taiwan,’ while also seeking to counter the influence of China US President Joe Biden on Saturday signed into law a US$1.2 trillion spending package that includes US$300 million in foreign military financing to Taiwan, as well as funding for Taipei-Washington cooperative projects. The US Congress early on Saturday overwhelmingly passed the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act 2024 to avoid a partial shutdown and fund the government through September for a fiscal year that began six months ago. Under the package, the Defense Appropriations Act would provide a US$27 billion increase from the previous fiscal year to fund “critical national defense efforts, including countering the PRC [People’s Republic of China],” according to a summary
‘CARRIER KILLERS’: The Tuo Chiang-class corvettes’ stealth capability means they have a radar cross-section as small as the size of a fishing boat, an analyst said President Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) yesterday presided over a ceremony at Yilan County’s Suao Harbor (蘇澳港), where the navy took delivery of two indigenous Tuo Chiang-class corvettes. The corvettes, An Chiang (安江) and Wan Chiang (萬江), along with the introduction of the coast guard’s third and fourth 4,000-tonne cutters earlier this month, are a testament to Taiwan’s shipbuilding capability and signify the nation’s resolve to defend democracy and freedom, Tsai said. The vessels are also the last two of six Tuo Chiang-class corvettes ordered from Lungteh Shipbuilding Co (龍德造船) by the navy, Tsai said. The first Tuo Chiang-class vessel delivered was Ta Chiang (塔江)