Business leaders warn Netanyahu that firing Gallant will harm Israel’s battered economy

The Israel Business Forum, which represents most workers in the private sector in the country, urges Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to go ahead with reported plans to fire Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, warning that it will further harm the already war-battered economy.

The forum of 200 leading businesses, which includes mall chain Big Shopping Centers, the Azrieli Group, and banking institutions, warns that the firing of Gallant will also weaken Israel in the eyes of its enemies and will lead to deeper social divisions among its people.

“It is clear that replacing the defense minister in exchange for a political deal regarding legislation that allows exclusion [of most ultra-Orthodox men] from military service, will exacerbate the gap in equally sharing the burden,” the forum says. It “will dramatically increase the frustration among the public who bear the burden of the [military] service, and the economic burden.”

“The Prime Minister knows better than anyone that all the economic indicators show that Israel is deteriorating into an economic abyss and is sinking into a deep recession,” the forum cautions.