Netanyahu secures 67 members for coalition

Barring last-minute changes (a not uncommon occurrence in Israel), Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s fourth government will be sworn in next week. It will be a narrow, right-wing and ultra-Orthodox government, but with a solid majority of 67 Knesset members, hence its nickname: “the 67 government.” This does not refer to the '67 border lines, but to the 67 Knesset members of the coalition from which this government will be assembled. Most of these Knesset members do not recognize the two-state solution and the 1967 lines; while these are viewed by the global community as the basis for all negotiations vis-à-vis the Palestinians, these Knesset members view them as fictitious.

This will be the first time that, in the current political era, an ideological right-wing government is established in Israel (with slight exceptions). Although the right has ruled Israel for several decades already (with short breaks), right-wing prime ministers were careful to establish balanced governments with representatives from center, or even center-left blocs. This was true for Ariel Sharon, when the Labor Party was part of his first government (2001-2003); for Netanyahu, whose 2009 government included Labor, too; and Netanyahu’s 2013 government, which included Tzipi Livni, now co-leader of the Zionist Camp. This time, Netanyahu lacks any and all major fig leaves; he says that he is carrying out “the will of the voter.” He promised an ideological right-wing government, and he is delivering on his promise. This is a dangerous experiment, the consequences of which are uncertain. It is a shame that such an experiment is being carried out on human beings.