Likud politician Yuli Edelstein announced he will run against former Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu for leadership of the party.
During an interview with Israeli Channel 12, Edelstein said he was spurred to seek command of the party because he believes “the current government is simply dangerous for Israel.”
“We will always stay in the opposition with Netanyahu,” Edelstein argued, as quoted by i24News.
“Netanyahu has already tried four times, how can we succeed with him the fifth time? With Netanyahu we will never return to power.”
Edelstein is former health minister and Knesset speaker in the Zionist entity.
He is politically farther right than Netanyahu, according to The Jerusalem Post, and opposed the decision to withdraw from Gaza.
Although the Likud primaries are not yet scheduled, Edelstein anticipates that they will take place in the coming months.
Additionally, the current Israeli government plans to vote on a law that would rule out a candidate facing criminal charges, which includes Netanyahu, who is facing charges of fraud and corruption in three cases.
Netanyahu was ousted from his position as prime minister, which he had held for 12 years, in a stunning upset earlier in 2021.
He was replaced by a coalition rotation government led by Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid.
Source: Israeli media
