The exchange came two days after Netanyahu said he hoped to establish a broad national government<\/a> after the next election, echoing rhetoric increasingly used by Gantz and his prospective political allies.<\/p>\n Speaking ahead of his Yesh Atid party\u2019s weekly faction meeting in the Knesset, Lapid argued that Netanyahu\u2019s outreach and attempts to engineer \u201csatellite parties\u201d were a sign he believes he is headed for defeat in the elections, set to be held by late October.<\/p>\n While Likud is projected to remain the largest party in the Knesset, recent polls show it falling from its current 32 seats to roughly 22-24, neck-and-neck with the opposition bloc\u2019s Gadi Eisenkot, whose newly formed Yashar party has been rising in the polls consistently, and last week overtook Likud for the first time in a Zman Yisrael poll.<\/p>\n \n\t\t\tGet The Times of Israel’s Daily Edition \t\t\t\tBy signing up, you agree to the terms<\/a><\/p>\n Neither Netanyahu\u2019s bloc nor the opposition bloc would be able to form a government, however, due to the rest of the votes going to Arab parties.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s completely clear that Netanyahu is trying to build satellite parties for himself, using votes from our camp, so he can form a government. He has no other way to win. Even so, he won\u2019t succeed,\u201d said Lapid, calling the efforts \u201cdesperate.\u201d<\/p>\n Although Lapid did not mention Gantz by name, his remarks appeared aimed at reports that the Blue and White leader is negotiating a joint run with Simhi and Hendel.<\/p>\n \t There have also been reports that former Likud minister Gilad Erdan and MK Yuli Edelstein \u2014 who, according to Hebrew media reports, is expected to soon announce a departure from Likud \u2014 are considering launching a new right-wing party.<\/p>\n Gantz declined to answer repeated questions ahead of the Blue and White leader party\u2019s own faction meeting about reports that he is in talks to run jointly with Simhi and Hendel, despite Simhi publicly stating that they intend to do so.<\/p>\n Blue and White said in a statement later on Monday in response to Lapid that \u201canyone who, on October 7, while our brothers were bleeding in the south, chose to make political calculations and count [Knesset] seats instead of joining an emergency government, anyone who encouraged refusal to serve and division, no longer has a place in public life.\u201d<\/p>\n Gantz has been criticized by other opposition leaders for twice propping up coalitions headed by Netanyahu, who has repeatedly in previous elections reached out to rivals and opponents in order to shore up his own government, only to renege on key political promises and for Gantz to emerge politically weakened.<\/p>\n Lapid again mocked Netanyahu\u2019s call on Saturday for a \u201cbroad national government\u201d as another desperate \u201chail Mary\u201d to remain in office.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat are you talking about? You will never form another government in Israel. There will be elections, and you will lose,\u201d he said, addressing the premier. \u201cWe will not sit with you. Is that clear enough?\u201d<\/p>\n Instead, Lapid said that he and former prime minister Naftali Bennett\u2019s joint Together slate will form a government with Eisenkot\u2019s Yashar, Avigdor Liberman\u2019s Yisrael Beytenu and Yair Golan\u2019s Democrats, and \u201chopefully\u201d also with Likud, but only after Netanyahu \u201closes and is sent into retirement.\u201d<\/p>\n Gantz was notably absent from the list.<\/p>\n Like Lapid and other opposition leaders, the Blue and White leader dismissed Netanyahu\u2019s unity appeal in his own press briefing on Monday, but also seemingly criticized the opposition bloc, with which he has broken in his unwillingness to explicitly refuse to sit in a government with Netanyahu.<\/p>\n \u201cThe only way to establish a broad Zionist government that includes both sides is through a large party that represents the bloc of the people of Israel \u2014 a party that does not give either side 61 seats,\u201d he said, adding that attempts \u201cby both sides to sabotage this effort\u2026 will not bear fruit.\u201d<\/p>\n
\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t The war with Iran has been draining for all of us in Israel. But when I heard about a high casualty incident \u2013 ballistic missile impacts in Arad and Dimona that left nearly 200 people wounded \u2013 I drank a cup of coffee, packed a bag, and headed south.<\/p>\n There, I spoke with Shilgit, the head of an after-school program for underprivileged youth. Standing outside her destroyed center, Shilgit said it was a miracle that no children were hurt and spoke about the community coming together in the hours since.<\/p>\n As a Times of Israel reporter, I\u2019m committed to telling stories of resilience like Shilgit\u2019s. But my colleagues and I can’t do this alone. If you value work like this, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to keep real human reporting like this going.<\/p>\n \u2014 Stav Levaton, military reporter<\/p>\n \t\t\t
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\n\t\tBlue and White leader Benny Gantz leads a faction meeting at the Knesset, Jerusalem, June 15, 2026. (Yonatan Sindel\/Flash90)<\/p>\n
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