Rivlin won’t return as Knesset speaker after PM pulls support

Former Knesset speaker MK Reuven Rivlin will not reprise his role after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu expressed his objection to him continuing in that position. Rivlin, who served as speaker in the past two governments, said Sunday he would withdraw his candidacy for the role.

In a meeting between the two on Sunday, Netanyahu indicated that he did not intend to support Rivlin’s candidacy and suggested that he would replace Rivlin with a different candidate from their Likud faction.

A source within the Likud party said Netanyahu would throw his weight behind MK Yuli Edelstein, the former information and Diaspora minister.

A source close to Rivlin told Maariv that Netanyahu’s decision was seen as an informal dismissal. Netanyahu and Rivlin reportedly disagreed on a number of matters during the last government’s term.

The source made it clear that despite the rift, Rivlin does not intend to resign from the Knesset.

The Likud Knesset faction is expected to vote on a candidate for the position of Knesset speaker on Monday. The Prime Minister’s Office declined to comment on the reports.

Likud MK Tzipi Hotovely said that removing Rivlin was a bad choice, remarking that he had done fine as speaker in the last term, Israel Radio reported.