Shaked calls blocking Lapid from Israel's premiership a 'fairy tale'

• Author: GIL HOFFMAN
• Published date: 13 October 2021
• Publication title: Jerusalem Post, The: Web Edition Articles (Israel)

Shaked was asked about the possibility of Prime Minister Naftali Bennett retiring from politics ahead of the rotation in the Prime Minister's Office that is set for August 2023. She was asked whether as the new head of Yamina, she would try to bring about the establishment of a right-wing government or allow Lapid to take power and perhaps form a Palestinian state.

"Are we in a fairy tale?" she asked. "I won't answer a hypothetical question, but the current government is working. The government is stable. Give us time to deal with the urgent issues that we have. We're about to pass the budget and it's very important. The mayors need this money to operate their cities. We had a lot of challenges – let's focus on them."

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But she added that she was never among the politicians who ruled out cooperating politically with opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu.

"I was never part of the 'just not Bibi' camp," she said. "I was willing to sit with the Likud and Netanyahu. However, after we establish a government, we need to work with this government. If other parties want to be a part, they would be very welcome. I'd be happy that some of the right-wing parties that are now in the opposition join the coalition."

Shaked is set to face a challenge from that opposition at the Knesset on Wednesday. Religious Zionist Party MK Simcha Rothman will bring to a vote his bill that would strictly prohibit Palestinians from marrying Israeli citizens to obtain citizenship and reform the immigration system.

Following negotiations between Shaked and Rothman, she said she reached an agreement to postpone his bill and pass new legislation he would work on with New Hope faction head Sharren Haskel. But Rothman said he was only willing to do so if she would rule out making concessions to Meretz and Ra'am (United Arab List) to pass her own government-sponsored bill.

"Some opposition members want to find an excuse to vote with the coalition, and they admit...