Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a statement on Tisha B'Av Wednesday evening, saying the nation had together prevented the 'destruction of the Third House' — a metaphor for civil war — over the past three years, and pledged to form a broad national unity government. 'I intend to establish a broad national government, a stable government that will ensure our security and future,' he said, according to his office.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Tisha B'Av message Wednesday evening, released at 18:54 Jerusalem and covered by Israeli media, expanded on themes of national unity and resilience in the face of internal and external threats. The statement, which The Zioneer reported in a preliminary bulletin at 18:48, included the full text of the Prime Minister's address.
Netanyahu opened by invoking the ancient destruction of the Temples and the 'terrible price of hatred and boycotts among us,' then pivoted to the present: 'In the past three years, with joint forces, we prevented the destruction of the Third House.' He described a nation that, instead of civil war, became 'brothers fighting shoulder to shoulder to repel those who seek our lives.'
The statement comes amid a period of high political tension, with elections approaching. The Prime Minister explicitly pledged to 'establish a broad national government, a stable government that will ensure our security and future.' This echoes recent calls he has made for a unity coalition in several public appearances, including a June 28 article in which he outlined four core principles for a future coalition emphasizing security independence and national cohesion.
The message closed with a classic Tisha B'Av refrain: 'In baseless hatred we were destroyed; in love of Israel we arose.' Netanyahu asserted confidence that the nation would meet remaining challenges, saying, 'Together, with God's help, we will ensure the eternity of Israel.'
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