From Grief to the Knesset: Taliq Guili on Joining Likud and Political Storms
Taliq Guili, mother of fallen hero Ran Guili, discusses her entry into Likud politics, the controversy over her campaign remarks, and her vision for the upcoming Knesset.
The upcoming Knesset is expected to welcome several new figures who became household names during the tragic circumstances of October 7 and the subsequent war. One of them is Taliq Guili, mother of Israel's hero Ran Guili, of blessed memory, who was abducted to Gaza and has been secured the ninth spot on the Likud electoral list. In an interview with "120 and One", she spoke about the storm caused by her first campaign video, in which she stated that "if the other camp wins, the memory of the fallen heroes will vanish."
On October 7, her son Rany, a Yasam counter-terrorism police officer, went out to fight terrorists who infiltrated from Israel's southern border, fell in a heroic battle at Kibbutz Alumim, and his body was abducted into the Strip. He was the last of the fallen to be returned to Israel following the October 2025 hostage agreement, and was laid to rest in Israel only in January of this year. Among the families of the hostages, the Guili family was among those who did not push for a deal at any cost, agreeing with the government's policy of exerting military pressure on Hamas.
The Path to Politics
Guili hints that beyond Likud, she received overtures from other political parties as well. Either way, she had no hesitation, noting that she has been a Likud voter from a young age. "The first person to reach out to me was Benjamin Netanyahu," she recalls. "His office called and summoned me for a meeting. I didn't really understand what it was about. It was early May, and he offered me a guaranteed spot. I said, 'But I'm not a politician.' He replied: 'Neither was I. I used to be a furniture salesman.'"
"You are conveying a certain message here, and I need you with me," Guili recalls Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu telling her when offering her the spot on the Likud list.
Addressing the public criticism that Netanyahu warned her she would face, Guili encountered it sooner than expected. In the video published a week and a half ago, she remarked that "if the other camp wins, the memory of the fallen heroes will vanish," triggering a massive political uproar. Explaining her remarks, she emphasized that "the other camp" refers not to the citizens, but to potential governing coalitions involving anti-Zionist factions that refuse to recognize Hamas as a terrorist organization.
Parliamentary Goals and National Inquiry
When asked about her future goals as a Knesset member, Guili highlighted the urgent need to support families affected by the October 7 massacres who are not yet officially recognized as victims of hostilities. She also called for an equal, national commission of inquiry to investigate the failures of that fateful day, expressing skepticism regarding the current judicial mechanisms and emphasizing the need for transparent answers.
