JERUSALEM — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s long political dominance is facing a major challenge, with two of the country’s heavyweight political rivals — former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid — joining forces to remove him from power.
The right-wing and centrist alliance, billed as a “super coalition,” could deal a major blow to Netanyahu in elections due by the end of the year, analysts said. They compared it to the Hungarian coalition that ousted the hardliner Viktor Orban. Bennett’s party, Bennett 2026, and Lapid’s centrist Yesh Atid have merged to form the new bloc.
The political shift comes as Netanyahu disclosed the removal of a malignant tumor from his prostate. The timing of the disclosure and the lack of detail have raised questions and could become a major issue in the coming election.
At a joint news conference Sunday, Lapid said, “We have come together today for our children’s future. The time has come to change the current course of the state of Israel.”
Standing next to him, Bennett announced that their new party would be called Together and that he would lead it. “After 30 long years, the time has come to bid farewell to Netanyahu and begin a new chapter for Israel,” Bennett said.
Bennett also called on Gadi Eisenkot, a former army chief and leader of the Yashar party, to join the coalition. Opinion polls suggest that if the three leaders unite, they would form the largest force in the Knesset, the Israeli parliament. Eisenkot has not formally announced he will join but has welcomed the move.
A recent poll by the Israeli newspaper Maariv showed Bennett’s party alone could win 24 seats, tying Netanyahu’s Likud party. Adding Eisenkot’s projected 12 seats and Lapid’s 7 would make it nearly impossible for Netanyahu to hold on to power.
But in the tangled politics of Israeli coalitions, the move carries risks for Bennett. By joining hands with a centrist like Lapid, he could lose part of his hardline, Likud-leaning base.
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