Israel’s Domestic Security Warns of Violence as PM Netanyahu faces Unseating

IsraelNews
By Aya Salaheldin
Netanyahu (L) with Bennett in 2019. Photo: Atef Safadi/POOL/AFP via Getty

Israel is on the brink of facing violence after Yair Lapid, the leader of the opposition party Yesh Atid, succeeded in forming a government coalition after the March 23 election. The Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is facing an unseating after serving 12 years in office, the longest-serving leader. The head of Israel’s Domestic Security issued on Saturday a rare warning of possible violence in Israel.

The new coalition government is composed of left-wing, liberal, rightist, nationalist, religious, and for the first time in Israel’s history, an Arab Islamist party.

The coalition was formed on March 23, where Netanyahu and his allies failed to form a government for the fourth time in only two years.

Under the coalition, Neftali Bennett, 49, a former defense minister and a high tech millionaire, would become a prime minister and hand over the post to Yair Lapid, 57, a former TV host and finance minister.

Netanyahu in his online posts said that “All legislators elected by votes from the right must oppose this dangerous left-wing government.”

Bennett, who is an angry ultra-nationalist, wrote many online posts attacking Netanyahu on social media.

Nadav Argaman, head of the Shin Bet security post, said in a statement that “We have recently identified a rise in increasingly extreme violent and inciteful discourse particularly on social networks.”

He added, “This discourse may be interpreted among certain groups or individuals, as one that permits violent and illegal activity that may even cause physical harm.”

The members of the coalition have little in common except their desire to oust Netanyahu from power, who is accused of corruption charges that he denies.

Argaman’s warning came to remind some of the days leading to the 1995 assassination of Yitzhak Rabin, who was shot by a Jewish ultra-nationalist as he was in favor of the Land for Peace deal with the Palestinians.

Lapid and Bennett hoped that their united government would help heal the divisions among the Israelis. According to a poll made by N12 Television’s Meet on Saturday, it showed that 46% were supporting the Lapid-Bennet government, 38% prefer another election (the fifth in 2 years), and 15% remained neutral without a preference.

Tensions among the Israelis might arise, especially during the expected next Jerusalem March in the Old City at the Damascus Gate in Jerusalem.

According to the German news agency, the DPA news agency, on Twitter, it said that “The swearing-in of Israel’s new government could be overshadowed by a possible outbreak of violence as nationalist Israelis plan a flag march in Jerusalem’s Old City”.

Tensions have already ignited last month that lasted for 11 days. It was due to Israeli aggression against Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood in east Jerusalem, a military campaign in the Gaza Strip on Hama, and on the Palestinians.

Aya Salaheldin

Aya is a content writer and a political researcher. She graduated with a Bachelor's degree in Political Science from the British University in Egypt (BUE) and London South Bank University in UK. Aya was a research assistant intern at various centers as the Egyptian Council for Foreign Affairs, Al Ahram Center for political and strategic studies, and the Africa Center at BUE. She was an international delegate at AYIMUN at Bangkok, Thailand. Aya shows an interest in International Relations, Foreign Policy, International Peace and Security, International Law, The Palestinian Cause, and African Studies. Aya is seeking to get her MA degree in Political Science field. Currently, Aya is a Journalist and Intern Writer at the Arab Institute for Leadership Development, intern at Ahram Online and a content writer at Core Middle East (CME).

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