Although he has decreed himself not to engage in politics at all while conducting the war in the Gaza Strip, following the political events and rumors about his plans, Defense Minister Yoav Galant has made it clear that he has no intention of leaving his party. According to him, "My political future is solely in the Likud."
In recent days, rumors have circulated that Gallant intends to leave his party, in light of the great personal tension between him and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Only this week did Netanyahu receive further proof of this tension: when Netanyahu was asked at a press conference why Galant was holding a separate press conference on the same day, the prime minister replied that he had actually invited Galant to speak with him at a joint event, but the defense minister chose to hold a separate press conference on his behalf.
Defense Minister Galant observing Shejaiya and Jabalia: "Golani fighters have returned to close the circle, they will not leave it until all the terrorist infrastructure is eliminated" // Photo: Elad Malka
This follows the announcement of Galant's dismissal by Netanyahu earlier this year against the backdrop of the legal reform protests and the phenomenon of refusal, and Netanyahu's return to him, as well as Galant's recent rapprochement with Benny Gantz and Gadi Einsakot from the rival party, the State Camp.
In addition, Galant did not attend government meetings throughout the war or the last Likud faction meeting, which led to rumors within the Likud that Galant, who did not start his political career in the Likud but in the Kulanu party headed by Moshe Kahlon, was looking for his way out.
Defense Minister Yoav Galant at a press conference: "The achievements are great, thousands of terrorists have been eliminated" // GPO
Recently, Likud sources have claimed that Galant, despite his extensive preoccupation with the war, also finds quite a bit of time to engage in politics, and briefs and attacks Netanyahu and other party ministers anonymously. Apart from the scenario in which Galant quits the Likud and switches to Benny Gantz's party, another speculative scenario is common in which Galant will establish an independent party headed by him after the war, in order to capture the moderate right, and leftists who took more hawkish positions following the October 7 massacre, who will not want to vote for one of the existing right-wing bloc parties. The same audience, by the way, is also aimed at former Mossad chief Yossi Cohen and former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, who may run in the next elections when they happen.
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