Political crisis in Israel: Netanyahu fires two ministers ahead of the early vote

Prime Minister Naftali Bennett and Justice Justice Ayelet Shaked are targeted by the Prime Minister. The two politicians thank the citizens but do not provide explanations regarding their expulsion. The provision allows Netanyahu to use vacancies with a view to pre-election bargaining.

Tel Aviv (AsiaNews / Agencies) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has fired two leading ministers from the executive - which will lead the country to the new (early) September elections. The provision confirms the crisis situation and the deep political rifts, even within the same majority coalition, in a nation called twice to vote in less than a year.

An official source close to Prime Minister Netanyahu's government cabinet confirms that the Minister of Education Naftali Bennett and of Justice Ayelet Shaked are the ones being fired. At the moment there is no more information on the reasons that led to the move.

Bennet and Shaked are both right-wing politicians, rivals to the current prime minister, and left the Likud ruling party earlier this year. Their new line-up, also positioned on the right, failed to win enough votes to cross the threshold and enter Parliament (the Knesset).

At the moment their new participation in the September 17th elections is not confirmed.

The two (now ex) ministers have released a note in which they confirm the replacement and thank the Israeli citizens, without giving more details.

In recent weeks, the Prime Minister Netanyahu failed to form a government by the deadline set for May 30th. In order not to risk being ousted from the leadership in favor of increasingly fierce rivals, he has decided to take the risk and call for new elections.

The move has, in fact, taken away from President Reuven Rivlin the possibility of entrusting the exploratory mandate for the birth of an executive to others. In the past, Netanyahu and Bennet have repeatedly clashed over events linked to the country's political and social life; however, to date the reasons behind the dismissal are not clear.

Both have previously served on Netanyahu's security committee. The Jerusalem Post re-launched sources close to the Prime Minister, according to which their role had no reason to be, following the resounding rejection by voters. Finally, their dismissal allows Netanyahu to use vacancies with a view to pre-election bargaining.

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