Blue and White party leader Benny Gantz called for the formation of a broad Zionist unity government in Israel, warning that any narrow government or one subject to extremist parties could lead to a “new disaster” and “the next massacre,” while directing sharp criticism at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his potential partners in the change camp.
Gantz’s statements came after Yoaz Hendel and Hailey Tropper announced last week the founding of the “Foundations of Israel” party, which, according to opinion polls, is expected to compete for the same segment of voters that the “Blue and White” party seeks to attract.
According to an interview published by the “Maariv Online” website, during which Gantz spoke to “103FM” radio, the latter discussed the departure of Trooper, who had accompanied him politically for years, and presented his vision of the necessity of forming a national unity government at the current stage.
Gantz touched on his personal relationship with Tropper and his move to work with Hendel, saying: “We have been together for many years, and I certainly appreciate the man. “I find it difficult, even with a magnifying glass, to spot the differences between what he says and what I say.”
He added: “Therefore, I believe that in the end a way will be found to bring everyone together and create a framework that requires the next government to be a broad Zionist government.”
Gantz continued: “I am not ruling out anything, and I am talking to a very large number of people. What matters to me is the final result, and the result says that a Zionist unity government must be formed.”
“I’m telling you this from our most painful place, we have no other solution,” he said. “Look at what’s on the agenda.”
Regarding the possibility of his future union with Trooper within one political framework, Gantz said: “There is nothing concrete at the present time. Didn’t Yoaz join the Corona government with me? Weren’t my tricks with me in the emergency government and other governments? Are we strangers to each other?
He added: “Is it related to who is at the forefront? maybe. But with all the respect that I have for others, as a former chief of staff and former defense minister, I bring many, many years of experience.”
Regarding his feelings after his political separation from Trooper, Gantz said: “My path and the path of my tricks are full of actions much more than words. “When people walk with you through all the bumps you go through, support you, and then eventually turn left, you can’t be happy about that.”
He added: “But the goal must nevertheless be looked at, which is simple: saving the State of Israel.”
Gantz added: “We cannot allow ourselves a weak government of change, or a government that does not stand up and depends on the votes of the Arab parties. We also cannot allow an extremist government to take us from bad to worse. This situation cannot continue, as the cemeteries are full due to this disaster.”
He stressed the necessity of forming “a broad Zionist unity government that serves the entire public, and carries a Zionist, democratic, security and traditional agenda.”
He continued: “When this government is strong, the Haredim will also be able to get the arrangements they want, and they must be part of them, but they cannot control and paralyze an entire country.”
He said: “This is the clear truth, and this is the truth that I am fighting for, and this is the truth that I will achieve, because we have no choice.”
Gantz touched on the issue of political camps, criticizing a number of figures emerging as candidates to head the next government.
He said: “The current government is completing its days because it has no political choice, but I say that we have no other national choice. We have to save these people.”
He added: “We are approaching the anniversary of the Hebrew ninth of Av, and I remember what I said on the ninth of Av before October 7: When the interior is weak, it will be attacked from the outside.”
“We cannot allow ourselves internal weakness, because that poses a real security risk,” Gantz warned.
He continued: “A narrow government is the next disaster, and a narrow government will lead to the next massacre, while an extremist government is a major disaster that will leave the people of Israel in a state of isolation under the slogan: A people lives alone. Only a Zionist government will succeed.”
Gantz expressed his optimism ahead of the upcoming elections, saying: “I am happy that many others are playing the same tune, and I hope we will succeed.”
He added: “I went through this path that Eisenkot is running, and I won 36 seats, not in an opinion poll, but in the result of the ballot boxes, and yet it was not possible to form a government that did not depend on the votes of the Arab parties.”
He continued: “Even when a government is established from one camp, the result is either a fragile and internally conflicting government of change, especially on the peripheries, which is torn apart after a year, or a government that unfortunately continues its days, but look where this leads.”
“I have a hard time remembering a single good bill that was pushed,” Gantz said.
He then moved on to talk about Netanyahu and the possibility of his participation again in a government headed by him, saying: “Netanyahu is wasting every good opportunity to achieve true unity. I know this from my personal experience, and unfortunately the public knows this from their experience as well.”
He added: “He had an opportunity during Corona, and an opportunity in the emergency government, but he did not make an effort to preserve either of them.”
He continued: “Along with everything else, Netanyahu must finish his duties, and I hope that the public will show him the way out.”
“I will certainly show him the way out,” Gantz said. Benny Gantz has done this several times.”
He added: “Three times I could have not gone with him, and I did not go with him. And when I was able to convey the possibility of becoming prime minister to Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid, I did so.”
He continued: “It cannot be claimed that when I had the opportunity to remove Netanyahu from power in a democratic manner, I did not do so. “I did it.”
Gantz promised that he and his team would lead a unity-based approach, saying: “The public must decide, and we will see what they say.” We will do everything possible to replace this bad government and form a good government.”
“Good government is not just about people, but also about how you build it, how you want it to work, and how you prioritize it,” he explained.
He added: “The government cannot be subject to the Arab parties, nor to the Haredi parties, and it does not need extremists within it. “It needs the people of Israel, who are a wonderful people.”
Gantz indicated that he believes in the change camp, but not in its previous form, saying: “I believe that we know how to run a state. We are talking about experienced people, and new people who have recently entered, and I believe that this renewal is a positive thing for Israeli policy.”
He asked: “Do you see Bennett and Lapid now following with me regarding the conscription law?” Why didn’t they do that during the change government? Because they were not able to do that.”
Gantz concluded by saying: “Will Bennett and Lapid agree with me to transfer explosive materials to the West Bank because something is needed there? The answer is yes. Why didn’t they do that? Because we were relying on Arab parties or on the issue of planting trees in the Negev.”
He added: “If we want life, we need a broad Zionist unity government. The State of Israel has no other formula that can succeed.”
Thus, Gantz puts his next campaign under a clear title: toppling Netanyahu, preventing the establishment of a narrow government from any camp, and imposing a broad unity government that he sees as the only option to avoid a new political and security crisis.
