Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan publicly rejected Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's promises regarding military conscription and coalition unity Sunday, signaling an imminent break as reports suggest Erdan is preparing to announce a new political party this week.
"We're not buying any more promises on 'conscription,' we're not buying any more promises on 'unity.' We won't sit in a narrow government of anyone," Erdan wrote in a social media post.
The statement came after Netanyahu presented a plan during a closed-door discussion to advance full military conscription legislation immediately after elections, emphasizing that a future broad national government would prioritize implementing mandatory service for all Israelis.
Netanyahu acknowledged that the arrest-freeze law passed earlier this summer had failed to achieve its stated goals. "In practice, it didn't work, so there won't be such a law in the next government," he said. He indicated a different approach: "After the elections, we'll establish a broad national government that will immediately pass a full conscription law that meets IDF needs."
On non-students and non-conscripts, Netanyahu adopted forceful language: "Whoever doesn't study Torah will be drafted, or will go to jail."
But Erdan rejected both prongs of Netanyahu's message—the conscription commitment and the assurance of a broad coalition. His statement set a clear red line: he will not accept a narrow government regardless of its composition.
The public rebuke signals a significant political rupture. Erdan appears to be positioning himself outside Netanyahu's orbit ahead of elections, a move consistent with reports of imminent party formation.
According to i24NEWS political correspondent Nadav Elimelech, Erdan is expected to announce the establishment of a new political party this week. Knesset member Yuli Edelstein and reserve Lieutenant Colonel Hezi Nehemia are reportedly set to join the new faction.
If the announcement proceeds as expected, Erdan's rejection of Netanyahu's promises may serve as the inaugural political statement of the new party, signaling its ideological direction and positioning it as an alternative to the current coalition.
The move represents a broader fracturing of Netanyahu's governing coalition. Earlier this month, Likud MK Dan Illouz announced his resignation, citing the party's capitulation on draft exemption legislation. Religious Zionism MK Moshe Solomon and Deputy Foreign Minister Sharren Haskel also resigned from government over the same issue.
Edelstein's reported move to Erdan's new party would represent a significant defection from Likud, potentially reducing Netanyahu's parliamentary base ahead of elections.
