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Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu has attacked a once close confidant, who many viewed as next-in-line to succeed the Prime Minister, former Minister Gideon Saar. Mr. Netanyahu accuses him of attempting a putsch to obtain control of the party after the elections for Knesset in 2019.

This relates to a report in Yisrael Hayom, that even if Likud emerges the victor in the 2019 Knesset elections, President Reuven Rivlin will not give Netanyahu the presidential mandate to try to form a coalition government. This is the reason PM Netanyahu has halted plans to dissolve the government and head to early elections, afraid of not receiving the mandate to become the prime minister of the next coalition, as reported by YWN-Israel.

Mr. Netanyahu made his remarks before the media, at his birthday party. He was 69 on October 21, 201.

He explained that he has been aware of the fact for the past weeks, that a former Likud minister has been speaking with officials in the coalition towards undermining his position. He vowed to bring Likud to a “sweeping victory” in the next elections, and promised despite their efforts, he will become prime minister again for their actions are contrary to the wishes of Likud voters and democracy.

In his response via twitter, Saar called it “a hallucination”, insisting there is no truth in the allegations leveled against him.

Saar resigned from politics in 2014, taking the political community by surprise as he was at the height of popularity in Likud, earning the second slot in the party primaries, directly under PM Netanyahu. In 2016, he announced he is coming back and there has been speculation regarding his political future since that announcement, including speculation he may launch his own party rather than returning to Likud.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)