Former Likud minister Gideon Sa’ar denies return to politics
'When there's something to announce, I'll announce it,' says ex-senior member of ruling party
Former minister Gideon Sa’ar, a widely popular figure in the ruling Likud party, denied reports Tuesday that he would return to political life after a two-year hiatus and run in the next elections.
A number of outlets reported earlier that Sa’ar had announced a comeback during a speech he gave at a yeshiva in the West Bank settlement of Efrat on Tuesday.
“The break is coming to an end, I will run in the next elections,” he was quoted as saying.
Sa’ar denied making the statement: “No, I did not announce that I would run in the next elections. When there’ll be something to announce, I’ll announce it,” he wrote on Twitter.
Sa’ar was a veteran Likud MK when he stepped down from his post as interior minister in October 2014, saying that he was temporarily leaving politics to spend more time with his family.
He was widely considered a serious challenger to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who heads the party and has criticized him in the past for his political maneuvers surrounding party leadership.
Earlier this year, an Israel Radio poll found that a new center-right political party with Sa’ar, former defense minister Moshe Ya’alon and Kulanu leader Moshe Kahlon would get 25 seats in Israel’s 120-seat parliament, knocking the ruling Likud party from its 30 seats down to 21.