Shaul Meridor: We are talking to people in Likud, they are fed up too

Shaul Meridor, a senior official in Gadi Eizenkot's "Yashar" party, hinted in an interview with "Sari and Schlesinger" published on Friday that his party is holding talks with Knesset members in the Netanyahu bloc, including Likud, regarding "defection" to the change bloc after the elections to form a Zionist government. "We will form a government with more than 61 mandates. If not, we have talks with many people from many parties, also on the other side. They are fed up with what they see, they cannot contain it," said Meridor. "We will talk to anyone who meets the definitions of a Zionist statesman, and they are invited to our government. Everyone who understands the magnitude of the crisis."

At the same time, Meridor claimed that "Yashar" will not form a government by relying on Mansour Abbas — neither with support from the outside nor by abstaining. "In order to make big moves and fundamentally change the duty of service, it is not enough to form a minority government that relies on the outside," said Meridor. "Mansour Abbas and his party do not meet our principles — recognition of the State of Israel as Jewish and democratic, recognition of the Declaration of Independence, and conscription."

"What remains of Likud — shames what it once was"

According to Meridor, Itamar Ben Gvir cannot be part of an Eizenkot government as he is motivated by racism. He leaves an opening for Bezalel Smotrich's party: "Smotrich today does not meet the principles, but I am waiting for him to meet them. He is a click to the left of Ben Gvir." Shaul Meridor, son of a "prince" who was close to Menachem Begin, does not spare criticism for Likud: "What remains of Likud is only the name, and it shames what it once was. Likud is neither a national nor a liberal movement. However, if the party changes its way, decides not to kill the judicial system, and wants to draft the ultra-Orthodox, then it is possible."

"After the elections all partners will stand behind Gadi"

Meridor noted that the "Yashar" party consists mainly of center-right people. "When people who came from the Ben-Gurion heritage like Eizenkot and people from the Begin heritage like me sit in the same party, and we agree on 95% of things — this shows how much the Israeli public has matured," he explained. Addressing the ambitions of Bennett and Lieberman, he added: "After the elections, when it becomes known that we are the largest party in the bloc, I am convinced that all our partners will understand that Gadi should be prime minister."

20 years in the Ministry of Finance: "Israel Katz is the only one who worked not to pass a budget"

Reflecting on his time working under Israel Katz, Meridor was critical: "Katz has been busy with small politics. He was the first and only Minister of Finance I know who worked not to pass a budget, because that was the only condition for Netanyahu to stop being prime minister." Meridor also attacked the "Deep State" theory, calling it a way to escape responsibility. He concluded by stating that a government led by Eizenkot would reduce the number of ministries to 20–25, as the main problem of the current administration is a lack of strategy.