Yinon Magal and Benny Gantz: "Coming soon to 'The Patriots'"
What happens when the National Unity chairman meets one of the media figures most identified with Benjamin Netanyahu by the coffee machine? A comic scene took place in the corridors of 103FM as Eyal Berkovich and Erel Segal conducted the broadcast.
An unexpected and highly amusing meeting took place recently in the corridors of the 103FM radio station, as Israeli politics collided with the vibrant dynamics of the station's broadcasters. Those who were supposed to be clear ideological rivals — National Unity chairman Benny Gantz and the media personality so closely identified with Benjamin Netanyahu, Yinon Magal — found themselves in a friendly situation during a coffee break, while in the background Eyal Berkovich managed the event by shouting from the studio.
The event began when Berkovich, who was preparing for the start of the program with Erel Segal, first demanded that Gantz enter, but immediately retracted in his characteristic way: "It's better for him not to come." When the former Chief of Staff did enter the studio, he was accompanied by none other than Yinon Magal. Berkovich did not miss the opportunity to tease the two regarding their hug, declaring: "Benny Gantz's last voter is hugging him," to the laughter of those present who called the event a "friendly match."
The conversation quickly shifted to more burning issues. Berkovich confronted Gantz: "He only cares about Netanyahu, are you going to help him?" Gantz, unfazed by the tense-comic atmosphere, replied with a jab of his own: "I'm not going to help him, I'm going to help you." When Segal suggested hosting the politician in the "kitchen cabinet" as a guest, Berkovich was quick to rule: "There is no kitchen cabinet right now, the kitchen cabinet is on recess."
Despite the statements in the studio, the camera moved to the station's real kitchen area, where the surreal moment of the day took place. Magal and Gantz were seen standing together by the coffee machine, in a photogenic atmosphere of old friends. Magal, who in his programs does not spare sharp criticism of the center camp and Gantz in particular, was heard declaring to the camera:
"The kitchen cabinet with Benny Gantz. There is no one like Benny... The kitchen cabinet is with love."
He even served him a cup of coffee he had prepared. While the two exchanged smiles, Berkovich's shouts continued to echo from the adjacent studio: "I've been telling you this for years, you don't want to listen to me! You still want to sit with someone like that?"
Magal, acknowledging the absurdity of the situation, concluded the scene with a declaration that drew much laughter and was a wink to his flagship program on Channel 14: "Coming soon to 'The Patriots'!" Will we get to see the National Unity chairman on the right-wing panel on television? Probably not, but at least by the coffee machine in the radio corridors, it seems that politics is left aside.
