By Paul Goldman and Yuliya Talmazan - NBC News
TEL AVIV - Leaders of two of Israel's main opposition parties said on Sunday they will work together to form a
coalition government
, in a move that could
unseat Benjamin Netanyahu
as prime minister for the first time in 12 years.
Naftali Bennett, head of the small religious and nationalist Yamina party, and opposition leader Yair Lapid of the centrist Yesh Atid party, said they had
joined forces.
"For the past two years, Israel has been in a circle of elections,
infighting
without leadership," Bennett said in a televised ad on Sunday.
"This will not happen again. We can stop this and take control. There is no option for a right-wing government led by Netanyahu: it is a government of change or new elections."
[Israel and Hamas agree to a ceasefire after 11 days of bombing in Gaza]
"Nobody believes Netanyahu anymore,"
Bennett added.
"At this critical moment, I say that
I intend to form a government of national unity with Lapid
.
"
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks to supporters following the announcement of the exit polls in Israel's general elections, at the headquarters of his party, the Likud, in Jerusalem on March 24, 2021.REUTERS / Ammar awad
Yesh Atid said on Friday that he had also reached agreements with the leftist Israeli Meretz party;
the New Hope party, a hard-line nationalist faction made up mostly of former Netanyahu allies;
and the Social Democratic Labor Party, which ruled the country for decades after the country's founding in 1948.
At least
61 seats
in the 120-seat Knesset, or Parliament,
are needed to
form a majority.
Lapid's 28-day mandate to form a new government ran out on Wednesday.
Netanyahu said in a statement Sunday that he had signed a "far-reaching" proposal for Bennett and New Hope party leader Gideon Saar to "prevent the establishment of a
dangerous left-wing government
.
"
It would allow both of them to serve as prime minister, he said.
[How did the last crisis between Israelis and Palestinians arise?]
Bennett, a former defense minister, did not comment on his announcement.
The new coalition comes just days after the ceasefire that ended an 11-day war between Israel and Hamas that left dozens dead.
The violence erupted amid a power vacuum in Israel after the March elections - the
fourth in two years
- did not yield a clear winner.
Despite repeated meetings with rivals and an unprecedented rapprochement with the leader of a small Islamist Arab party,
Netanyahu failed to meet the deadline to form a new governing coalition earlier this month.
Netanyahu, 71,
has been in office since 2009,
but his legal troubles in recent years have overshadowed his legacy.
Last month began a major
trial
for
corruption against him
on charges of fraud, bribery and breach of trust.
He has denied all the infractions and has said that he is the victim of a "witch hunt".
Netanyahu is likely to remain at the helm of his party, the Likud, as the leader of the opposition.
[Israeli bombings kill 8 children and demolish another building in Gaza: it was the headquarters of media such as AP and Al Jazeera]
Over the years, he has become a divisive figure in Israeli politics.
In the last elections, three parties were led by former high-level aides who fell out with him.
The new government is expected to take office on
June 8
, Israel's Channel 12 reported before the announcement.
According to the channel, Bennett will be the prime minister during the first two years and three months of the rotating government.
Then Lapid will take over in September 2023 for the last two years and three months.
Paul Goldman reported from Tel Aviv, Yuliya Talmazan from London.