Zionist Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman announced that his Yisrael Beytenu faction was splitting from Likud on Monday.
Lieberman called a press conference to announce the dissolution of the union, saying that his differences of opinion with Zionist Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have made a continued partnership impossible.
He stressed that the split does not stem from political considerations, but rather from differing opinions in the field of security and war, particularly Netanyahu's handling of continued rocket fire from the seized Gaza Strip.
Lieberman added, however, that he has no intention of leaving the governing coalition and does not seek to advance early elections.
Moreover, he said that the current coalition is the best alternative available, and that calling new elections would not change the makeup of the Knesset and its Left and Right blocs.
Earlier, flames of "Israeli" divisions hit the "Israeli" cabinet Sunday under the title, " Dealing with Gaza".
"Israeli" Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu traded sharp barbs at Sunday's cabinet meeting with his Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman, who over the weekend slammed what he said was "Israel's" tepid response to the rocket fire from Gaza.
Netanyahu opened the weekly cabinet meeting saying on camera what was needed now was to act "with composure and responsibly, and not with "militancy or rashness."
"We are working on several fronts at the same time" he said. "Last night we acted against numerous Hamas targets in Gaza, and the objective of all those actions is to return the quiet and security to the citizens of the South. Experience proves that at such times we must act responsibly and with equanimity, not hastily. We will do whatever is necessary to restore quiet and security to the South."
This comes as "Israeli" Environmental Protection Minister Amir Peretz criticized Lieberman for coming to Sederot settlement on Friday and slamming the government.
He added that certain ministers - a reference to Lieberman and Bennett - were showing a lack of responsibility and sowing frustration and a lack of confidence in the security establishment Netanyahu agreed, and told the ministers, without singling out Lieberman or Bennett, that this was a "sensitive moment," and that they all share collective responsibility.
According to one official in the meeting, he told them that they were not "commentators," and if they had something to say, they should air it in the "proper forum."
"There is no need to engage in populism," Netanyahu said. "There are ministers who are taking advantage of the situation to attack me and the government. This is irresponsible and damaging."
Lieberman then sharply criticized Netanyahu, saying he was the last one who could make these comments.
Alluding to the fact Lieberman missed last Sunday's security cabinet meeting, and is often absent from security cabinet meetings, Netanyahu retorted he should first come to those meetings, and then only speak about the policies in the press.
Lieberman's response: he was in Berlin on Sunday on state business, and Netanyahu should not give him grades.
Even as he counseled "composure" and not acting "rashly," "Israeli" Intelligence Minister Yuval Steinitz added his voice to other ministers publicly calling on the government to take much tougher action in Gaza.
"I am looking at this strategically," Steinitz told reporters on his way into the cabinet meeting. "What we need to achieve is not only deterrence. I'm talking about taking control of Gaza, cleaning out the stables in Gaza and leaving Gaza."
Finance Minister Yair Lapid, on the other hand, called on his fellow ministers to not overdo their rhetoric, and to not act or talk like "talk backers."
"We need to lower the flames, not increase them," he said.
Source: News Agencies, Edited by website team
07-07-2014 | 10:13
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