Trump wants 'unity government' to exclude Ben Gvir and Smotrich

Washington – Occupied Jerusalem – Agencies: The Israeli website “WaYnet” reported yesterday that sources close to U.S. President Donald Trump stated he intends to intervene “personally and using all available means” to ensure that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu does not form a government that includes the Religious Zionism party, led by extremist Bezalel Smotrich, and the Jewish Power party, led by extremist Itamar Ben-Gvir. According to the sources, forming a government that includes National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir “is not an option.” WaYnet sources added that Trump will not concede on obtaining a quid pro quo for what they described as a “victory for Netanyahu,” suggesting he would push for the formation of a unity government based on a rotation of the premiership, thereby enabling the expansion of the “Abraham Accords.”

In his first comment on the results of the Israeli elections, Trump attributed Netanyahu’s “electoral gains” to his support for him yesterday morning. Speaking to journalists as he returned from an election rally in Texas, Trump said, “I heard that he (Netanyahu) achieved very good results. The competition is quite close, and that’s very good. When my endorsement of him was published, it helped him a lot. But I’ve already heard that he achieved quite decent results. It looks like he’s winning or in a tie. I heard he’s doing quite well.” He added, “It’s still a little early, but I’m hearing that senior officials in Israel are saying, ‘Wow, he did much better than expected.’ It looks like a tie, or perhaps even a win. We’ll see what happens.”

Coinciding with his remarks, Trump posted a lengthy quote attributed to a person named Irving C. Schwartz on his Truth Social platform, which read: “When President Trump announced his support for Benjamin Netanyahu, the entire tide turned.”

Trump had first intervened in the Israeli elections on Sunday, October 18, when he published an endorsement of Netanyahu, his first during the campaign, in which he wrote that “Netanyahu is a great fighting prime minister, and a greater partner for peace in the fight against the Islamic Republic of Iran.” In the same post, Trump touched on the possibility of launching another military campaign against Iran, stating, “We will finish the job soon,” and adding, “If Israel has the wrong leader, anyone other than Netanyahu, America will have to finish this job itself, and I have no desire to do that.”

On the night between Sunday and Monday, Trump renewed his call for Israelis to vote for the Likud party and reposted his message of support for Netanyahu. Addressing Israelis via his social media platform, he said, “For those who haven’t seen it yet, I’m attaching the endorsement I gave a week ago to your prime minister, Netanyahu.”