Lieberman resigns as FM, won’t join next coalition
Yisrael Beytenu leader Avigdor Lieberman announced Monday that he was resigning from his current position as foreign minister and that his party would not join the new coalition.
“Unfortunately everything we wanted in coalition agreements and also that which we didn’t see brought me to the conclusion that the future will not be a government that serves national interests, but one that serves opportunists,” Lieberman said at a press conference.
Lieberman added that he would proceed to submit his resignation letter to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Among his complaints on the direction of the new coalition, Lieberman accused Netanyahu of “zigzagging,” and lamented that the new government was not committed to eradicating Hamas in Gaza or building new housing units in Jewish settlements.
The current foreign minister’s remarks came as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faced a Wednesday morning deadline to form a new government.
Last week Netanyahu signed coalition deals with the United Torah Judaism and Kulanu factions. The deals gave Netanyahu the support of 46 MKs from Kulanu, UTJ and his Likud.
He is now faced with completing a 61-MK coalition with Bayit Yehudi and Shas.
JPOST.COM
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