Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that Itamar Ben Gvir will not keep the National Security Ministry or be appointed defense minister if Netanyahu forms the next government. Israel's ambassador to the United States, Yechiel Leiter, repeated the message in an interview with CNN.
Netanyahu first signaled on Army Radio on Wednesday that Ben Gvir would not get the defense portfolio. At a campaign event in Acre on Thursday, he said both the National Security and Education ministries would stay with Likud.
Ben Gvir's Otzma Yehudit party responded sharply, saying the remarks show Netanyahu intends to form a government with former IDF Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot. Ben Gvir told Walla he expects to win more seats and still become defense minister, with Otzma MK Yitzhak Wasserlauf taking over National Security.
