Bennett plays role in revenge against Yamina rebel who kicked off collapse of coalition

Former prime minister Naftali Bennett takes an active hand in enabling the coalition’s revenge against errant Yamina member Idit Silman: He splits off from his own party along with MKs Matan Kahana and Shirly Pinto in order to enable them to run on other party’s slates in the November elections without resigning from the Knesset, though Silman is blocked from doing the same.

Three out of Yamina’s seven MKs needed to split off in order to create a separate faction without being subject to sanctions.

Silman initiated the coalition’s eventual demise when as coalition whip she resigned from the political alliance, depriving the coalition of its parliamentary majority and setting off a tumultuous three months before its leaders, Bennett and Yair Lapid, called it quits.

Neither Silman nor Kahana nor Pinto plans to remain with Yamina, whose now-leader Ayelet Shaked merged the party with the Derech Eretz faction to form the Zionist Spirit slate. Kahana plans to run with the newly formed National Unity party, while Pinto’s plans are not yet formed.

Bennett, as announced last month, is not running in the upcoming election and will take a break from politics.

If Silman wants to run with another party, she must resign her Knesset seat by September 15.