Two former Israeli prime ministers join forces against Netanyahu in
upcoming elections
[April 27, 2026]
JERUSALEM (AP) — Two Israeli political heavyweights on Sunday
said they would join forces in elections scheduled for later this year
in an effort to unseat longtime Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid served as prime ministers in a rotation
agreement as part of a coalition government they formed in 2021, ending
12 years of Netanyahu's rule. Now they plan to merge their parties into
single faction headed by Bennett, calling it a partnership between the
center and the right. |
Former Israeli prime ministers Naftali Bennett, left, and Yair Lapid
hold a joint press conference announcing that their parties will run
together in the upcoming elections, in Herzliya, Israel, Sunday, April
26, 2026. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit) |
|
Bennett said if elected, the new government on its first day
would establish a state commission of inquiry into the Hamas-led
Oct. 7, 2023 attack on southern Israel that started the war, an
issue that has dogged Netanyahu.
There have been calls in Israel for a public inquiry into the
failures around the Oct. 7 attack, the deadliest on Israel in
its history.
Lapid urged Israel's political center to unite behind Bennett,
adding that “this country needs unity like air to breathe."
Bennett had served as prime minister for the first year of their
2021 agreement until the coalition fractured. Lapid then held
the top job as caretaker prime minister for the final six months
until elections brought Netanyahu back to power.
Lapid has served as Israel's opposition leader since that time,
while Bennett took a break from politics.
The two men have ideological differences. Bennett is an Orthodox
Jew with hard-line views toward the Palestinians, while Lapid is
secular and seen as more moderate. But they enjoyed a close
working relationship during their short-lived coalition.
“We have been through a great deal together. We have made
difficult decisions together. We know we can count on one
another,” Lapid said.
Their alliance is aimed at uniting a fragmented opposition that
appears to have little in common beyond their shared hostility
toward Netanyahu.
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