Ya'alon calls on left to unite in order to topple Netanyahu

Former Likud lawmaker, Defense Minister, says left must unite to end Netanyahu's decade in power.

Tzvi Lev,

Netanyahu and Yaalon
Netanyahu and Yaalon
Haim Zach, GPO

Former Defense Minister Moshe 'Bogie' Ya'alon called for Israel's fragmented center-left to unite in order to topple Prime Minister Netanyahu in the upcoming elections in April.

"My goal is to create a bloc that will replace the government and bring the State of Israel back on track, and I will leave my ego outside the room," Ya'alon said in an interview at a cultural event in Tel Aviv on Saturday.

"I am talking to all sorts of factors in order to create a bloc and believe that more than two parties must be joined together and stick to the priorities of what is important," Ya'alon added, stressing that he would not sit in a government headed by Netanyahu.

Regarding what he called "Jewish terrorism" and the Shin Bet, "government ministers do not support the Shin Bet security service in dealing with Jewish terror, thereby undermining its ability to deal with Palestinian terrorism," alleged Ya'alon.

"When Netanyahu and his men attack the head of the Shin Bet, the police commissioner, the prosecutor's office and the court - the rule of law and statehood is in danger."

"The fact that there is more Palestinian terrorism does not justify a single Jewish attack," said Ya'alon. "A Jewish attack leaves our moral ground, and anyone who wants to settle in Judea and Samaria must understand that it is harmful to him. Jews do not do such a thing...we need to stay human."

Ya'alon, who was previously a Likud member, served as Defense Minister from 2013 until he was replaced by Yisrael Beytenu leader Avigdor Liberman in 2016, at which time he left the Likud. His relationship with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has deteriorated since he was forced to leave his ministerial position.