Blue and White official threatens to dismantle coalition after Gantz boycott

[Chris]

Blue and White official threatens to dismantle coalition after Gantz boycott
Senior Blue and White official: Bennett and Lapid must handle this, otherwise the government will disintegrate.
Israel National News
22.02.22

A senior official in Defense Minister Benny Gantz’s Blue and White party on Monday night warned that the coalition could be dismantled. The threat came hours after Gantz and the Blue and White party announced they would boycott votes on bills in the Knesset plenum, in protest of the failure to promote their law on the expansion of military pensions.

The senior official told Kan 11 News, "Bennett and Lapid must handle this, otherwise the government will disintegrate. It is impossible for those who are on the margins to lead and run the government, it will not last." Kan 11 News also reported that Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and Finance Minister Yair Lapid were furious that Gantz's announcement of a boycott came an hour before his planned meeting with Bennett.

more............... https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/322679

 

[Chris]

Blue and White boycotts Knesset votes over legislative holdup, angering partners
Gantz’s party claims ‘breach of coalition obligations’ on matters of security; coalition slams defense minister’s ‘childish behavior,’ delays planned votes
By Amy Spiro
21 February 2022

Citing a list of gripes with the current government, Defense Minister Benny Gantz’s Blue and White party declared a boycott on Monday of Knesset votes, leading the coalition to pull several bills from the evening’s plenum agenda. Blue and White proclaimed that it would not cooperate on government-backed bills due to “the apparent damage to state security and the breach of coalition obligations for a period of months.”

Gantz and the other members of the party decided to skip all Knesset plenum votes on Monday, with the exception of a no-confidence motion. The defense minister said he has been holding a “quiet dialogue” with Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and Foreign Minister Yair Lapid to address a series of concerns, including passing the ultra-Orthodox draft law, benefits for reserve soldiers, reforms to the national service system, and legislation to ease the way from military service to higher education.

The Blue and White statement did not explicitly mention military pensions, but Gantz railed against the government on the issue during a speech Monday morning. He claimed that critics of the pension hike were spreading “blood libels” against military officers.

more............ https://www.timesofisrael.com/blue-...es-over-legislative-holdup-angering-partners/