Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has called for the formation of an emergency government to confront a growing crisis over the coronavirus, offering a potential way out of the deadlock that has paralysed the political system for the past year.
Mr Netanyahu made the offer in a nationally televised address on Thursday night, saying the virus does “not differentiate” between Jews and non-Jews or between the left and right.
“I call for the formation now, even this evening, of a national emergency government,” he said, adding that politics should be put aside. “It will be an emergency government for a limited period. Together, we will fight to save the lives of citizens.”
His rival, former military chief Benny Gantz, said he was willing to discuss the possibility of a unity government and his party would do “everything in our power to see it move forward”.
The conciliatory language marked a sharp change after months of acrimonious campaigning and heightened rhetoric in the wake of another inconclusive election earlier this month.
Israel has been relatively insulated from the coronavirus scare, with just over 100 cases diagnosed so far, but the numbers have begun to creep up in recent days.
Israel has imposed a number of tough restrictions to slow the spread of the virus, placing tens of thousands of people into protective home quarantine, ordering all Israelis who return from overseas into quarantine and barring almost all tourists from entering the country. Mr Netanyahu announced that schools and universities would be closed through the end of the Passover holiday in mid-April, with the exception of preschools, boarding schools and special education facilities.
Read the article by Josef Federman in The Australian (AP).