Coalition chairperson MK Idit Silman has announced that she is leaving the coalition. Prime Minister Naftali Bennett's government thus loses its majority in the Knesset. Silman's departure comes after she received an offer from the Likud party to guarantee her tenth place on the party's list of candidates for the Knesset in the next election. Silman was a member of Bennett's own Yamina party.
Bennett has cancelled his schedule for today and is holding consultations on how to proceed. Minister of the Interior Ayelet Shaked has also canceled her planned meetings for today.
Last month, Silman was reconsidering her position and told associates that she could not continue in the current coalition. Following the ultimatum she presented to Minister of Health Nitzan Horowitz over his decision to comply with the ruling of the High Court of Justice allowing visitors to bring hametz (leavened bread) into hospitals on the Passover holiday, when its consumption is forbidden by Jewish religious law, and Bennett's remarks yesterday to the effect that there was no need for threats, she decided last night to announce her departure.
Silman said in a statement, "I tried unity, as someone who comes from a background of seeking the good and the common ground. I worked hard for the current coalition. Unfortunately, I could not lend a hand to a blow to the Jewish identity of the State of Israel and the people of Israel. You don't know everything, because I tried to act quietly. I cannot continue on this path because of the values and the place I come from.
"I am ending my membership of the coalition and I shall continue to try to persuade my colleagues to return home and form a government of the right. I know that I am not the only one who feels this way.
"The Jewish identity of the State of Israel is our raison d'être here. This is our heart, this is what we are. An inconsiderate blow to the public and the values that I represent is a red line for me.
"It is possible to form another