Can Netanyahu really fire the person responsible for the strike at Ben Gurion Airport? We checked

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered last night the expulsion of Pinhas Idan, chairman of the Israel Airports Authority workers' committee and a veteran member of the Likud movement, following the strike at Ben Gurion Airport that disrupted the airport's operations on one of the busiest summer days.

Behind the late-night statement hides an interesting question: Can Benjamin Netanyahu even expel a Likud central committee member as he wishes?

The bottom line is no, there is no exclusive authority to carry out such an expulsion. He can strive for it, but it is not guaranteed. The Prime Minister is indeed the chairman of the Likud, but he has no personal authority to cancel membership. According to the Likud movement, the one authorized to do so is the movement's tribunal.

In any case, Pinhas Idan can oppose the decision, petition against it, and appeal it.

This is not the first time that Idan finds himself in danger of expulsion. In 2023, he shut down Ben Gurion Airport as part of the protest events against the judicial reform, as part of the Histadrut's struggle. In the Likud, they were furious about this and filed a petition demanding to terminate his membership in the party, claiming that he acted against the government and against the values of the Likud.

Idan claimed that he acted in accordance with the instructions of the Histadrut chairman, and that he was told that the strike was coordinated with Benjamin Netanyahu's office. After the claim was denied, Idan retracted and clarified that he mistakenly believed that such coordination existed. Ultimately, the Likud tribunal did not expel him from the party but criticized him.

The current event sharpens the tension built into the Likud: on one hand, Benjamin Netanyahu holds significant political power; but he cannot, at least formally, decide alone who is a member and who is not.

Furthermore, the tribunal has ruled in the past against moves identified with Benjamin Netanyahu. For example, in July, the tribunal rejected an attempt to cancel the primaries in the event of a security escalation and determined that the elections must be held in accordance with the rules.

Either way, after a strike that harmed tens of thousands of passengers and caused, according to an initial estimate by the Ministry of Finance, damage of about 25-30 million shekels, it seems that at least on the public level, Benjamin Netanyahu is trying to distance himself from Idan just one day after he was photographed with him and the Minister of Transport at a festive event held at the airport.