Blue and White chairman Benny Gantz rejected on Thursday afternoon Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu’s call to join a unity government under the Likud leader’s leadership, stating that he would be prime minister of a potential unity government.
“I am interested [in] and intend to form a broad, liberal unity government under my leadership,” Gantz said in a statement ahead of Blue and White’s first faction meeting since the elections.
“To form a unity government you do not come forward with political blocs and spins but rather honesty, statesmanship, responsibility and seriousness,” he said, referring to Thursday’s agreement among the right-wing and religious parties to conduct coalition negotiations together, under Netanyahu’s leadership.
Just moments after Gantz’s announcement, Netanyahu said in a statement, “I was surprised and disappointed that as of now, Benny Gantz still refuses to respond to my call to meet. The president called for a unity government, but without a meeting between the two major party leaders, it is impossible to form a unity government.”
According to the latest figures with 95% of ballots counted, Gantz’s party won 33 Knesset seats, compared to Likud’s 31.