Posted on 05/03/23
| News Source: JPost
The Otzma Yehudit Party will boycott Knesset votes until Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu implements a “fully right-wing policy” and enables its minister to influence the state’s national security policy, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir said Wednesday.
“If the prime minister does not want a right-wing government, he is welcome to fire me,” he said in a press statement while in Sderot. “We will not attend votes in the Knesset until the prime minister internalizes and understands that we want a fully right-wing government, and that we are an inseparable part of the discussions and part of the implementation of the Israeli government’s security policy.”
Ben-Gvir’s remarks indicate a spiraling rift in the coalition between Otzma Yehudit and the Likud. Tension began to rise on Tuesday, when Ben-Gvir demanded to attend the prime minister’s security situation assessment after dozens of rockets were fired from Gaza, but he was not invited.
Otzma Yehudit then announced that it would not show up for Wednesday's votes in the Knesset plenum, and instead hold a special faction meeting in Sderot, following what they called a "weak response in Gaza."
In response, the Likud said in a statement: “The prime minister, defense minister, IDF and security agencies are the ones who manage the sensitive and complex security events that Israel faces. The prime minister is the one who decides who is relevant to which discussion. If this is unacceptable to Ben-Gvir, he does not need to remain in the government.”