Blue and White chairman Benny Gantz told the Israel Hayom Conference that talks with MK Yoaz Hendel have not collapsed and expressed openness for Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein to join his camp. The statement contradicts earlier media reports signaling a breakdown of negotiations between Gantz and Hendel.
Blue and White leader Benny Gantz addressed the state of coalition talks at the Israel Hayom Conference on Sunday, directly countering earlier reports of a breakdown in negotiations with MK Yoaz Hendel. Gantz stated that the contacts 'did not collapse' and welcomed the possible addition of Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein to the emerging centrist framework.
As The Zioneer previously reported, media reports as recently as Sunday morning (Sun 12:43) assessed that gaps with Hendel's camp remained wide and that he was not expected to join Gantz and Dedi Smakhi's fledgling party. Negotiations over the past several weeks have seen Gantz exploring the creation of a new centrist united slate following the collapse of the previous alliance with Gideon Sa'ar and Avigdor Lieberman.
Edelstein, until now a member of the Likud faction, has faced tensions with Prime Minister Netanyahu over internal party matters. A move by Edelstein to Gantz's camp would mark a significant shift in both Likud internal balances and the broader Knesset arithmetic, though no formal announcement has been made. The Sunday comments remain the first on-record statement by Gantz directly addressing the talks, marking a more optimistic tone than the anonymous briefings that had preceded it.
3 developments
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Source and signal
- Internal intake