Israeli Prime Minister-designate Binyamin Netanyahu announced on Thursday morning the granting of five ministerial portfolios to an ultra-Orthodox party, thus moving closer to a coalition agreement with his right-wing allies before a key deadline this weekend.
Last week, Binyamin Netanyahu's Likud signed coalition agreements with the three far-right parties - Religious Zionism, Jewish Force and Noam - which elected deputies in the November 1 legislative elections that led to the defeat of the Outgoing Prime Minister Yair Lapid.
To form the next government, Benyamin Netanyahu still had to agree with the two ultra-Orthodox parties: United Torah Judaism (UJT, Ashkenazi) and Shas (Sephardic), which he has partly done in recent hours.
Formal agreement not signed
On Wednesday, December 7, the Likud agreed on the granting of positions with UJT, then Thursday morning the Likud and Shass announced that the latter party will receive five portfolios in the next government without however signing a formal coalition agreement.
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The leader of Shass, Arié Dery, will be Minister of Health and the Interior during the first part of the government's mandate and then will be Minister of Finance
", underlines this press release, specifying that Mr. Dery will also be appointed Deputy Prime Minister. , a first for an ultra-Orthodox MP.
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The announcement comes less than three days before the Sunday, December 11 deadline, when Binyamin Netanyahu must announce the formation of a government unless he requests an extension of up to 14 days from President Isaac Herzog.
In order to sign an agreement with the ultra-Orthodox parties, the Likud must however change a law allowing the appointment of Minister Arié Dery, who has been charged with tax evasion which invalidates for the moment his appointment to a ministerial post.
But Monday, December 12, the Knesset (Parliament) must appoint its new president.
The Likud and its far-right allies and ultra-Orthodox parties will impose their candidate who can then urge the deputies to change the law in order to allow Arié Dery to integrate the future government, underlines the local press.
And thanks to a preliminary agreement with the ultra-Orthodox parties, Benyamin Netanyahu will be able to more easily justify his request for an extension to President Herzog, the Israeli media also argue.
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Sentenced in 1999 to three years in prison for fraud, Arié Dery had been accused again of tax evasion in 2021 but had benefited from an agreement with justice.
Re-elected in November, he can by law sit in Parliament but not receive a ministerial portfolio.