Is Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s coalition headed towards another crisis? An argument broke out during Sunday’s Cabinet meeting between Netanyahu and Ministers Moshe Kahlon and Naftali Bennett, reportedly over Netanyahu’s plan to appoint two more ministers from the Likud.
According to various reports, Kahlon accused Netanyahu of “disrupting the balance of the coalition” and added, “It is unacceptable that the ratio of the Likud ministers to its Knesset seats is bigger than everyone else.”
According to a report on Channel 2 News, Bennett expressed similar sentiments.
The argument stems from Netanyahu’s desire to appoint coalition chairman MK Tzahi Hanegbi as a minister, as well as MK Benny Begin, who served as a Minister Without Portfolio but was forced to leave the government once Internal Security Minister Gilad Erdan joined the government, in order to keep with the demand of the coalition partners that Likud keep to agreements to have only 11 ministers in the government.
On the flip side, the Likud argues that Kahlon would like to appoint MK Rachel Azaria of Kulanu as Deputy Economy Minister and is therefore pressuring Netanyahu.
“This is not a crisis, but a desire to enter negotiations,” Likud sources said Sunday night. Kahlon and Netanyahu are scheduled to meet on Monday to discuss the situation and likely reach understandings.