Israel Insider with Alex Selsky

0:01 Okay, good evening from Jerusalem to everyone. We're here on Israel Insighted. Today you are with Alex Selski even though we are in the beginning of this week. published that it's this week Ashley will be speaking but Ashley is in traveling with his family which he deserves and this week I'm with you and next week I will be traveling with my family which I deserve and my family definitely and my wife definitely. So um today we will speak about um something that you know Israelis know very well and breathe uh daily and these days. I think that the most majority of the most of the discourse and uh issues in Israel are coming from this and these are elections and politics and many um interesting um crucial events are happening now and

1:11 we are you know only two and a half months uh from the elections. The elections will be in October 27th of October. I'm reminding you and this is the first time in more than 30 years in Israeli politics when the Knesset the Israeli parliament completes the full term. Um this is exactly the date that the elections should have been and held and uh this is a a great issue for you know for the Israeli politics and for the Israeli society.

1:55 And you know it is very um for many shocking and for many surprising and for many surreal that exactly this government after October 7th is the government that completes the full term and the elections will be held in time and no no falling uh no this parliament So I want to speak about few all of them political things because this is the major things that happen and let's start maybe from you know general view of we see the polls don't change so We still see that no block meaning the coalition and the opposition have in the existing polls a full majority without the Arab parties. So the issue of the

2:58 Arab parties and the ability and the readiness of the opposition to use the Arab parties either inside the [clears throat] coalition or to support from outside but you know not not being part of the coalition but not letting it down, not voting against. This is a major issue the opposition deals with and in in in this regard we see a very interesting event that happening in Israel now that um a member of Kesset from Yeshit party um the party of um Y laid is He left the party and all the people speak and apparently that's what happening

4:00 even though he didn't join officially yet but he is about to join to the Ram Arab party. This is the party head by Mansur Abbas. This is the same party I remind you that joined the coalition in the previous government uh in uh 22. This is the party that is religious Muslim party that is connected to in a way to Muslim brotherhood uh through the the a religious body that is you know I'm simplifying it very much coordinating in Israel the the the the Islamic movement now They said that the Mansur Abbas said few years ago that they have no connection anymore to this to this uh party the the the Sharia

5:06 committee [snorts] and that their agenda is to integrate into the Israeli politics and to care for the people. Um and we see that a member of Yeshit is [snorts] about to join this Arab party. Now this not just a member of the party. This is Yufig Galovich who was a head of an investigative department in the police. Let's say he was very high rank officer, senior officer in the police before he joined um before he joined the politics.

5:46 So many say that this move is organized and planned and um in in order to make Ram kosher to enter the coalition after the elections and that Sigalovich will be the one that will represent them in you know government or any senior position in the government or chair of the committee whatever he will get. Uh so now some commentators say that they don't believe even that this will happen that Sigalo will find himself really integrating into Ram. But this is an historic event of former Israeli senior police officer that is integrating into an Arab party.

6:40 That will definitely will be very interesting shift in Israeli politics and Israeli society and if it succeeds very interesting to see if this will really make possible the integration of Ram into the coalition in the next elections. Um uh the polls as I say as I said show that no coalition in the position have the majority. We do see during the last week that as we call it the third block the primarily the people who leave the Lud or the rightwing camp like Erdan Edelstein and Yazendel together with trooper who was part of part of guns. how they form a kind of a third block that demands a wide Zionist government from all the participants and they will be even

7:46 though they will be small if they pass but even they they will be small and you know in some polls they pass in some polls they don't pass in some polls they pass more and some polls they pass less but if they will pass even four or five or six mandates of this kind of third block that doesn't say that they um join whoever in advance and they say that they will force white national government um unity government and one of the parties of Ardan and Edin called themselves unity because they say our mandate is to force unity they will definitely be those who who will who will um [clears throat] influence actually the result of the forming the Um another very interesting story that actually happened yesterday and last couple of days is the story of

8:50 what happens in Liut. I mean we see already few weeks um a very dramatic shift within Liood. You see how the prime minister tries to um replace a big part of the liquid list to take out people that were um that were let's say damaging to li people that were not popular by many of outside Lud definitely also within Liood but yesterday we revealed something very interesting that He the the the prime minister got eight um places that he can put you know not outside primaries right outside the eternal elections you can just put these people in the list and the first one that he announced was a surprise for all the political system in all the Israeli

9:52 society is Orin Dub Bronky who is a startup um entpreneur who made his money in the states, who has been living in the United States for many years and just now came back and he was announced by the prime minister as his first um nominee to the list to the very high place number 11 which is definitely is entering in. And yesterday um in in in the media it was also published that if he enters he gets to be a minister. And then we heard from a a big story in the news that this is actually the way in which the prime minister tries to revenge those who tried to uprise against him after October 7th. And turns out that immediately after October 7th,

10:58 there was a pooch, an uprising internally within Likud head by near Barcat, the econ the econ minister of economy and former mayor of uh Jerusalem and by the way the richest member of Knesset. He's the former high-tech entrepreneur, very successful with fortune of hundreds of millions of uh shekels and uh and actually what Nathaniel is doing, he actually kicks out all those who were partners to this pooch, partners to the surprising partners to this attempt to replace the prime minister and Burkat wanted to replace the prime prime minister and in in a technical way to put himself as interim prime minister and [snorts] Natao now comes you know with a revenge to all of those and we see that all of the not loyal people to Natao are just

12:03 kicked out from the list and those who were loyal and are promoted and the most interesting name is Katz who apparently It turns out that was the one that stopped this pooch and stopped the uprising against the prime minister to replace the prime minister by [snorts] near Barcat and came to Netanyahu and told him about that and stopped this and now he kind of gratitudes him and thanks him and and puts him into the list without primaries even though he kat should have you know a very big electorate within the primaries but he doesn't need to h and and and Israel Katz also gets placed in the list by so we see that Natao cleans the list by the main criteria of loyalty to himself.

13:01 This is what we are learning from yesterday and this shows a lot about Israeli politics about the liquid politics and um and uh about Netanyahu and we know that Netanyahu is you know and uh and we see that right now. So these are I think the major things economywise we see that Israel continues in in even though we see you know correction in the Israeli market but we see still rather stability of the shekele uh we see further exits of this really high-tech companies um I think that also this move of bringing Orin Dub Bronkin to the based is a way of Nathaniel also to you know to say to the Israel high-tech industry

14:03 that he prioritizes this. So um uh yep these are very interesting developments and on that I finish my presentation I will be glad to answer your questions which I already see that are coming. Okay. So, um Hillibbrand is Israel sending a search and rescue team to Colombia. There was no mention in the press. Well, I can tell you as a um as a reserve major of the HR command, Israel always help even to countries without the diplomatic relations as it happened in Venezuela. By the way, we saw this is also interesting that Venezuela announced about opening office of interest, not embassy yet, but the first time after many years some kind of

15:08 of Venezuela in Israel. Definitely, it comes after the change. Yeah. the so-called regime change by the United States, but definitely it happens after the very successful Israeli um search and rescue HR command delegation that took part in [snorts] in rescue after the earthquake in Venezuela. So, I'm sure that in Colombia, Israel suggested as well immediately. uh not every country wants not every country you know immediately answers but I'm sure that Israel suggested and I I you know I will check if Israel sends it because I'm serving in the same actually course of of um of this delegation David Marovitz is asking can you please clarify what the problem was and what happened with the head of [snorts] the this is yeah this is uh interesting.

16:13 it's a bit already old news, but the head of the Mossad fired two senior managers. one of them deputy of the head of the MSA who were um who were planning or who were part of the planning of the operation to of the Iranian regime collapse in the beginning of uh the [snorts] rising lion And um he said like in the press release it was said that that because of their failure of this plan the critics say and again you must understand it everything now everything that happens now in Israel and outside Israel with everything is seen and reported and discussed. just

17:21 in in you know in political through the political lens and everybody takes every news to his benefit and uh and commentates it as you know as it's good for his campaign. So the critics say that you know the Mossad head is the you know the executor of the prime minister who is again coming with revenge on those who disagreed with him or the head of the Mossad does it. We don't know. We don't know what exactly happened. But these are the Many ask themselves, does it mean what does it mean about the if Israel still is committed and serious about the regime collapse in Iran?

18:08 I think that it shows that yes, I think that it shows that the head of the MSAD is impatient to the failure. So he wants to see success in that and the debt committed. We'll see. Okay, I see some uh some remarks as well. do you believe that there will be a threat of a foreign interference in the elections? I'm sure. And we saw few weeks ago already a very significant announcement of the head of the Shinbet and the head of the election committee who is a a a judge of the high the the Supreme Court.

19:07 They both announced that they see attempts to intervene in the elections and that they work to neutralize these attempts. I'm sure that there are big attempts that are coming from many angles. We know that traditionally Iran and Russia and Qatar operate in Israel with uh many information warfare operations within Israeli society. I'm sure that they uh do special efforts around the elections. So I think this is not a question of [snorts] by the way not only in Israel, Um Barbie Ramboz did the race traders [snorts] okay this is this is this is this is not

20:13 a question. This is a remark. I see many people who criticize move of Sigalovich joining the uh the Arab party. I'm sure that yeah there are many people who will criticize it and uh yes yes you know we see by the way we see disagreement in in opposition regarding this issue. we see uh and this is also an issue that you know I I could speak about it but it's you know it's discontinuing many weeks already but we see disagreements within the opposition regarding the issue of integrating the Arab partisan to the future coalition because we we hear Mulan who is saying that this is possible and and and definitely feasible and reasonable and we hear Victor Deliver who says no way we will not do that and who continues to say that Jurgen should you know just

21:17 shut up that that the language he uses. So uh you know the disagreements within the uh the the opposition are u very significant. By the way, the the the divisions in in the coalition, new divisions are also significant because for the first time we hear the ultra orthodox parties say that they are not in the pocket of Natanya. But I think and I join here many commentators who say that ultraorththodox parties don't have any other choice besides Natao. So these are these are declarations that we will hear until the elections and after the elections they will you know they will find each other in the hands of of each Um [clears throat] okay let's let's find the questions.

22:19 ah this is a good question. Yeah, I should I should maybe elaborate on that. David Marowitz is asking, "What is the population's general feeling about the recent Gaza agreement?" I don't think that there is any Israeli today that doesn't want full disarmament of Hamas, full destruction of Hamas. And uh we saw that Natao rejected the plan of the the the body that manages the Gaza the you know the peace committee. Um and uh we saw the attempts you know of uh Nikolai Ladinov who is uh managing it to you know to impose on Israel some compromises and concessions but Israeli government is um is consisting and I think that it

23:24 represents all Israelis in that on a full disarmament of Hamas and full elimination of the Hamas rule in Gaza and I don't think that there are any even in the very far left Israelis who who disagree with it. Okay, another question. Why is Mansur Abbas being allowed to run? What happened with Natao's efforts to have him disqualified because he is under investigation for funding Hamas?

24:10 Um, no, his he's his he's his he was not disqualified and he is not and the claims of some organization that were connecting them to Hamas. First of all, I'm sure that now maybe uh people will claim these claims again to the election committee. But the thing is that I think that nobody, no block, not opposition and even not the coalition will fight Mansour bus because each one after all I believe are still thinking that he might be the to reach the majority. I remind you that the opposition did it. I remind you that Natao negotiated with him on that. You

25:17 are right that the chances for this are much lower after october 7. But you know things that happen before elections and things that happen after elections are very different. I'm reminding you Bennett who shifted after elections. Liberman who shifted after elections and many many other So I don't think that any of them will fight Mansur Abbas or maybe they will fight but not eliminate him. Um and I think that this move of Sigalovich for many in the coalition also because you must understand Ram must doesn't need to enter coal let's say a coalition has 58 okay and Ram has five or coalition has okay and Ram has five now Ram doesn't

26:21 have to enter the coalition to complete to 61. It can support from outside meaning that they will not vote for the coalition but they will not vote against the coalition. So if the opposition has even one member of it one finger less than than the coalition and Ram from outside not voting with the opposition and not voting even though with the coalition it keeps the coalition alive and that can definitely happen and Nata already negotiated this with Ram and now if why not I mean you know why you think that he will not negotiate again because you know we're in different times okay so before elections he will say no and after elections let's see and if you

27:24 think that I'm talking things that cannot happen just learning history of Israeli elections and again I gave you cases you know take the case of Bennett who was you know saying before elections that he will not sit with Nata or said that he will you know be only on the right and and and and became the prime minister of the of the center so-called center left right right against nothing else. So things can happen. Things can happen.

28:00 Because when you need a few voice, a few fingers to rule, you will make them kosher. And things already happened in Israeli politics as I told you. Does Liberman have a path to becoming a prime minister? Oh yes, he does. H in the right people say that he can you know complete the coalition for Netanyahu and get in rotation half of the term being prime minister but I don't see Liberman trust Netanyahu and I don't see that Natao doesn't you know I don't see that keeps the promise to Liberman how I know that because he already didn't keep his promise to guns in the same rotation agreement so you know unfortunately we are in in a status that I I don't see that qual that opposition anyone if Liberman can demand from the opposition the same yes if they will

29:04 give him let's see let's see the numbers I think it will be hard but it's possible it's definitely possible you know in Israel politic if not if if Liberman convinces the opposition that he can go with the which I don't see him doing he can get or that he just agrees with the opposition on that and this is also possible because he's the most veteran most experienced most um I think I don't want to say unifying but he's the most experienced so he definitely can do that thank you very much we came to an end even though we had more questions and and and I can answer in more depth on the existing questions, but our time is over. So, next week I will be on vacation and Ashley will be here. So, enjoy and uh support Israel and keep your eye on the ball. We're here and it's always interesting in our

30:07 beloved country. Thank you. Goodbye.