This just in: the Israel Beiteinu party, under the leadership of recently exonerated Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, will not repeat its combined campaign experience with the Likud, Israel Radio reports.
At a closed session of the party’s leadership circle, party secretary MK Faina Kirschenbaum informed her fellow party leaders that the chairman, Lieberman, is of that opinion, as do the heads of the local branches across the state and members of the secretariat.
Kirschenbaum said that this was a done deal, and the only issue remaining was how to announce this decision without hurting the feelings of their faction partner, Prime Minister and Likud Chief Benjamin Netanyahu.
So they leaked it instead.
While at it, Kirschenbaum said that her party will not agree to any unilateral coalition changes on the part of Netanyahu (the guy whose feelings they’re trying to spare). They will not accept the Haredi parties in place of Yair Lapid’s Yesh Atid coalition partner, nor the Labor Party in place of Jewish Home.
“There’s no reason to change this coalition and we must find the way of getting along without stepping on each other toes,” Kirschenbaum said.
Netanyahu’s coalition has faced a few internal clashes: Jewish Home is objecting to Lapid’s party’s proposal to award welfare money to same-sex families, Tzipi Livni objects to Jewish Home’s tax on hostile NGOs’ foreign contributions, and everybody is against Jewish Home’s construction plans in the disputed territories.
Deputy Defense Minister Danny Danon (Likud) said his party will continue to cooperate with Israeil Beiteinu, despite its separate future plans.
That’s what you cal an amicable divorce.