Incoming MK from the Religious Zionism party, Orit Struk spoke to Arutz Sheva before being sworn into the 24th Knesset. Struk said she felt confident a right-wing government was still in the cards so long as rightist parties opposed to Netanyahu "woke up" on time.
Struk named PA occupation of government-owned lands in Area C and concessions to the demands of the national community at the upcoming ICC trial as just a few dangers facing the country if a left-wing coalition comes to fruition.
Alluding to tensions between her party and Bennett's Yamina in which Smotrich accused his former associates of "playing with fire" in the midst of negotiations with Yesh Atid to form a center-left coalition, Struk said she knew Yamina MKs on a "first-hand" basis, having worked alongside with them for a considerable amount of time. Struk called them "people with lofty character traits who make the fight for a Greater Israel an uppermost priority, along with limiting the powers of the Supreme Court. I'm sure that at the end of the day, their consciences will prevail [and they will join Netanyahu's coalition]," she added.
Asked why Smotrich wasn't willing to join a center-left coalition with Lapid, Labor, and Meretz, Struk said the State of Israel was always facing danger and that large chunks of it were being stolen from "under our nose" with tends of thousands of Palestinian Arabs taking over parts of Area C with blessings from the PA. "As soon as we give in and join such a government, our hopes of staving off their gradual invasion will be dashed."
"[Naftali] Bennett is well aware of this," she says. "Gideon [Sa'ar] understands how it works. Ayelet [Shaked] realizes the weight of the hour and the tragedy that will befall us if a left-wing government assumes power. Who'll prevent the approaching disaster? [Labor's] Merav Michaeli? [Yesh Atid chairman Yair] Lapid? Benny Gantz, who, instead of taking the fight to the PA panders to their every whim?"
So are you saying another election is a better alternative?
"The best option we have is a right-wing coalition. I don't believe individuals with high ethical standards who understand the likely consequences of a takeover by the Left will go in that direction when all's said and done. At the end of the day, I'm confident they'll do the right thing and listen to their inner voice," concluded Struk.