Benny Gantz
Benny GantzElad Malcha

Defense Minister and Blue and White Chairman, Benny Gantz's, delivered a statement this evening prior to the vote to extend the budget decision, preventing - or at least delaying - another round of elections.

"Threatening elections is a not a personal threat being held over me, it is a threat being held over the Israeli people. I will not allow anyone to bring this country down on its knees…I will protect this nation’s security internally and externally, and under my watch, no one will harm the rule-of-law," he stated.

"I will never be part of attempts to unravel democracy, or to appoint puppets favorable to particular authorities or parties…Conciliation is not a dirty word, it is a vision for our life together. We are one nation, we are brothers.”

“One hundred days ago, I decided to put every personal and political consideration aside and do what I have been committed to doing since first enlisting in the IDF and since taking on national leadership: To put Israel before everything else. To put the best interests of the country before my personal interests," asserted Gantz.

He related to the first 100 days of the unity government, saying “I have given my political partners in government one hundred days to internalize that my intentions are peaceful, that my hand is extended toward collaboration and my heart is open to one concern only: genuine concern for the safety, livelihood, and wellbeing of Israel’s citizens.

Gantz alleged he had been on the receiving end of personal assaults against him and his party, saying: “I have remained silent for one hundred days. I was silent in the face of personal attacks, I was silent in the face of endless attempts at humiliation and exclusion, I was silent in the face of mockery and ridicule by senior Likud members. A true leader can weather any type of criticism, a frightened leader will undermine stability by staying preoccupied with himself. One hundred days of silence, containment, and restraint have ended.”