Benny Gantz
Benny GantzKobi Richter/TPS

Blue and White Chairman Benny Gantz addressed the political impasse and did not rule out a unity government with Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu.

In an interview with Channel 12, he said, "All options should be on the table right now. It wouldn't be responsible of me to not consider every possibility. The State of Israel must do two things at the moment - deal with the Corona crisis in the health, economic and social spheres, while at the same time maintaining its democracy and ensuring that it continues functioning democratically."

"It is impossible to ignore the fragile circumstances on the national level," Gantz added. "I hear that the citizens are interested in resolving the political crisis. I know that the State of Israel is not where it was on February 15 or February 16, so it is of utmost importance to me not just recall what I said then but also ask what should be done."

"I will do everything I can to help Netanyahu and the State of Israel fight this crisis," Gantz added. "If you were to tell me, 'Benny, put on your uniform and coordinate traffic at the coronavirus testing drive-in at MDA' - if that was what the State of Israel needed, I would do it."

Gantz attacked Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein, accusing him of shutting down the Knesset on orders from Netanyahu. "I warn the Israeli public - everyone who is watching us now, the prime minister, Knesset ministers and MKs - democracy is critical to Israel."

"Democracy [is the only choice] and one has to be very careful not to approach the margins of dictatorship," said Gantz.

"If the Knesset does not return to complete functionality, it will be very serious. We may need to approach the High Court to start the Knesset. The Speaker of the Knesset acted on Netanyahu's command and delayed Knesset hearings. I guess it has something to do with politics," he quipped.

"If the government meets and discusses the issue of digital means and only the next day they appeal to the Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee, almost 24 hours later, and the committee has an hour left to [look into this] - is that a democracy? I tell you this is not a democracy," Gantz added. "No harm will be done if Knesset members stand within two meters of each other," he said, referencing safety measures enacted by Edelstein.