The Netanyahu government’s break-up portends spring election
The falling-out between Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Finance Minister Yair Lapid, head of Likud’s leading coalition partner Future appeared irreversible Monday night when the latter spurned the former’s ultimatum to fall in line behind government policies or face the voter. It is now up to Netanyahu to decide whether to fire Lapid and take over finance, or wait for him to quit. The leading parties have already taken up campaign mode.