Aryeh Deri
Aryeh DeriFlash 90

Interior Minister Arieh Deri (Shas) addressed the coronavirus disease crisis this morning and called to establish a national emergency government.

"A national emergency government must be set up because of the coronavirus. I warn Blue and White not to play games; if the Knesset Chairman is replaced and laws against Netanyahu are passed, it'll be impossible to talk about a unity government," Deri said in a Galei Tzahal interview.

He wondered: "How can Gantz be allowed to handle this war? He wouldn't know the first thing to do {Hebrew idiom: 'He wouldn't find his arms or legs'}."

He referred to the gridlock around establishing a minority government and urged the three former Chiefs of Staff leading Blue and White not to play into Lapid's hands: "Gantz, Ya'alon, and Ashkenazi - Don't play Lapid and Liberman's games because you reached a dead end."

He later addressed coronavirus, saying that "South Korea's model of mass testing must be adopted by Israel. We're preparing to create areas where we'll conduct public checks. We'll import kits as there are in South Korea and Europe."

Meretz Chairman MK Nitzan Horowitz responded to Deri by saying that "Coronavirus doesn't grant immunity from politics and law. It's just an excuse for the wanton man who's dragging the State down. With him, unity cannot be made."