Speaking at a Monday press-conference along with Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked, Israeli Education Minister Naftali Bennett, who sought to replace Avigdor Lieberman as defence minister, said that neither he, nor Shaked would resign despite the previous threats.
READ MORE: Israeli Defenсe Minister Lieberman Resigns, Slams PM for 'Surrendering to Hamas'
At the same time, he stressed that the responsibility for solving security problems was on Netanyahu’s shoulders:
“I tell the prime minister here: we are withdrawing right now all of our political demands and will stand to help you in this great mission of getting Israel to win again. […] The ball is in the prime minister’s court,” he said.
Bennett says on Friday Netanyahu signaled he’d be willing to make Bennett Defense Minister but last night he said he’s keeping it for himself.
— Lahav Harkov (@LahavHarkov) 19 November 2018
“If PM is serious in his intentions, I am saying now: We are removing all political demands and standing here to help israel win again”
Bennett, who is the leader of the right-wing Bayit Yehudi party, further lambasted Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the security situation in the country.
“Israel is in a serious crisis of confidence. The problem is not our enemies, but ourselves. Something bad is happening on the inside, including during the last decade in Netanyahu’s governments – the state of Israel stopped winning. I saw that with my own eyes during Second Lebanon War, I saw the mortification and the confusion, the lack of determination, I saw the lack of spirit,” Bennett said.
Bennett and Shaked at their podiums, most of the party files in
— Lahav Harkov (@LahavHarkov) 19 November 2018
Bennett: Israel is in a crisis of trust on security. We always had enemies…in War of Independence we overcame our enemies with few weapons and a lot of faith. Same in Six Day War. pic.twitter.com/9tlvqmOhSt
Previously, Bennett and his party threatened to leave the ruling coalition if he didn’t receive the defence role after Lieberman’s resignation.
READ MORE: Netanyahu Says Temporarily Taking Over As Defence Minister
In a Sunday statement, Netanyahu called on the rest of his coalition partners, who have been calling for early elections following the resignation of Lieberman, not to dissolve the government. He also added that he would temporarily take on the role of defence minister:
“Today, I take on for the first time the position of defence minister. We are in one of the most complex security situations and during a period like this, you don’t topple a government. During a period like this, you don’t go to elections,” he said.
His speech came shortly after Lieberman and all five MPs of his Yisrael Beiteinu (Israel Our Home) party left the ruling coalition following Netanyahu’s agreement to a ceasefire with Hamas militants that put an end to the latest surge in violence in Gaza.
Last week, Hamas announced an Egypt-brokered ceasefire with Israel to halt escalating hostilities, which resumed after Palestinian militants launched rockets at Israel in retaliation for seven militants killed during an Israeli special forces operation.
Prior to the announcement, the Israeli military claimed that it had detected about 460 rocket launches by Palestinian militants from Gaza, intercepting more than a hundred projectiles. In response, the IDF conducted several attacks on various Hamas targets, including militant bases, underground tunnels, and the headquarters of the internal security service.
