Who were the four Likud MKs who disregarded the instructions of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu on Wednesday and voted via secret ballot for the opposition MK to serve on the Judicial Selection Committee?

In a video that circulated on social media after the vote, Likud MK Yuli Edelstein is seen approaching opposition leader Benny Gantz after the vote and whispering in his ear.

Gantz then approached Chili Tropper, a member of his party who reportedly was in touch with the “rebels” earlier in the day and whispered in his ear.

Political analysts identified the other rebels, with Maariv commentator Ben Caspit claiming that in addition to Edelstein, Likud MK Dovid Bitan, the head of the Economy Committee, and two ministers, Environmental Minister Gila Gamliel and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant voted with the opposition.

These four Likud members have long been identified by the opposition as the weak link in the Likud and as the leaders of the group opposed to passing the judicial reform legislation plan in its original draft.

Caspit added that the scenario that materialized is exactly what Netanyahu wanted to happen and even Netanyahu himself voted for Elharrar. “Bibi is breathing a sigh of relief,” Capsit said. “This is what he wanted. The opposition got its representative, the protests won’t hit the streets, [Justice Minister Yariv] Levin was pushed into a corner, and he gained another month. According to this version, [Strategic Affairs Minister] Ron Dermer defeated Levin.”

“By the way, Dermer sat all day in the Knesset…working on tailoring the results. And who defected to Karin Elharrer, according to the assessment of opposition sources? Bitan, Edelstein, Gamliel, Gallant, and Netanyahu.”

The right-wing camp and the media declared the results of the vote as a “defeat for the coalition” but the reported statements of a senior Likud member, one of the four who voted for Elharrar, painted a different picture.

“Netanyahu knew that Elharrar would be elected, and was not surprised by the results,” he was quoted as saying by Channel 12 News. “We saved Netanyahu from Yariv Levin. If Elharrar had not been elected, there would have been [another] Gallant incident here on steroids,” he said, referring to the mass protests that broke out in late March after Netanyahu announced he was firing Gallant for calling for the judicial reform legislation to be halted.

Galatz Radio reported that Tropper, MK Ze’ev Elkin and other senior opposition members knew in advance about five defectors from the coalition who had informed them in recent days that they would vote for Elharrar.

Ynet reported that while Gantz was excoriating Netanyahu and threatening to blow up negotiations, he was simultaneously working to recruit defectors. Throughout the day,  Tropper and Elkin were working on Gantz’s behalf, holding secret meetings and phone calls with coalition members. According to the report, Tropper already had a majority by noon on Wednesday.

Earlier in the day, Bitan said on Army Radio that “it’s important that the Judicial Selection Committee should have one representative from the coalition and one from the opposition.”

On the other hand, the right-wing members of the coalition are furious at Netanyahu for his concessions on the judicial reform and are planning to hold a protest on Thursday evening in front of the prime minister’s home in Caesarea – the first time a right-wing protest will be held against Netanyahu.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)