JERUSALEM: The Israeli prime minister’s opponents said on Wednesday they had reached a deal to form a new governing coalition, paving the way for end of the record-setting 12-year rule by Benjamin Netanyahu.

The dramatic announcement by opposition leader Yair Lapid and his main coalition partner, Naftali Bennett, came moments before a midnight deadline and prevented the country from plunging into what would have been its fifth election in just over two years.

In a statement on Twitter, Lapid said he had informed the president of the deal.

“This government will work for all the citizens of Israel, those that voted for it and those that didn’t. It will do everything to unite Israeli society,” he said.

Under the agreement, Lapid and Bennett will split the job of prime minister in a rotation. Bennett will serve the first two years, while Lapid is to serve the final two. The deal includes a small Islamist party, the United Arab List, which would make it the first Arab party ever to be part of a governing coalition.

The agreement still needs to be approved by the Knesset, or parliament, in a vote that is expected to take place early next week.

Netanyahu, desperate to remain in office while he fights corruption charges, is expected to do everything possible in the coming days to prevent the new coalition from taking power. If he fails, he will be pushed into the opposition.

In a sign of progress, Lapid earlier announced a coalition deal with the United Arab List, a small Islamist party whose support is key to securing a coalition. The deal would make it the first Arab party to be part of an Israeli governing coalition.

Published in Dawn, June 3rd, 2021