Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked was reportedly offered to join the Likud party - four days before leaving the Jewish Home party together with Naftali Bennett in order to form the New Right (HaYemin HaHadash).
According to Hadashot, Shaked was approached last week by a senior Likud official who tried to coax her into joining the Likud. Shaked had served as Prime Minister Netanyahu's office director between 2006 and 2008 before her acrimonious departure from the Likud.
The Likud official assured Shaked that she would merit a senior post in the party should she decide to return to the Likud. Shaked responded that she was well aware of her popularity within the Likud but said that Netanyahu would do everything possible to prevent her return.
Despite the promises by the official that her return would be approved by the Likud's Central Committee, Shaked replied that she didn't see herself returning to the Likud until Netanyahu no longer headed the party.
Shaked denied the report, saying in a statement that "I did not ask to join the Likud, and any such insinuation is a complete lie".
A relative newcomer to Israeli politics, Shaked's meteoric rise has fueled speculation in the past that she will jump to the rival Likud party in order to succeed Prime Minister Netanyahu, with a July poll showing that the Justice Minister would lead the Likud to 33 Knesset seats.
In the wake of the survey, however, Shaked said explicitly that she had no intention of returning to the Likud and would only consider a run for Prime Minister after Naftali Bennett had done so himself.