Liberman shifts to ultra-Orthodox compromise in bid to oust Netanyahu
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Long-time secular nationalist Avigdor Liberman announced he will work with Israel's ultra-Orthodox on military service, aiming to build a coalition that could remove Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Avigdor Liberman, the leader of the Yisrael Beiteinu party, said he will drop his veto on cooperating with Israel's ultra-Orthodox community and is ready to negotiate a compromise on conscription. The move is intended to help assemble a parliamentary bloc capable of challenging Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, whom Liberman once helped bring to power.
Liberman, a former chief of staff and defence minister under Netanyahu, has long championed secularism and opposed the ultra-Orthodox exemption from mandatory military service. He previously described the community as "anti-Jewish" and criticised a recent ultra-Orthodox rally against conscription as "a spit in the face of our heroic soldiers."
During the current election campaign, Liberman also called for Jordan to assume control of parts of the West Bank administered by the Palestinian Authority, a suggestion that drew sharp criticism from Netanyahu, who accused him of allowing a foreign army to rule Israeli territory.
Despite his opposition to cooperation with Arab-Israeli lawmakers, Liberman said the political reality forces a compromise. > "I am not engaged in political manoeuvring, nor am I trying to undermine anyone," he told supporters.
Liberman, a Soviet-born immigrant who founded Yisrael Beiteinu in 1999 to represent Russian-speaking Israelis, said his shift reflects a response to prejudice against Russian speakers and a need to break a political deadlock. He denied any personal ambition to become prime minister.
The Yisrael Beiteinu party holds seven seats in the Knesset, the smallest number among the core opposition parties, but each vote is crucial for opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot's bid to form a government.