For 3rd time in days, Rivlin scraps events after learning Netanyahu to attend

President Reuven Rivlin cancels his appearance at a reopening ceremony for the Khan Theater in Jerusalem after learning that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would be there.

The theater is holding its first show tonight for the vaccinated, after a five-month closure.

This is the third time in several days that Rivlin has canceled appearances over Netanyahu’s last-minute participation at those events.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Reuven Rivlin at the President’s Residence in Jerusalem, September 25, 2019. (Yonatan Sindel/Flash 90

His office says, “Unfortunately, the president cannot partake in the ceremony… after it became clear that it would take on a political tone, in the spirit of the election campaign.”

Israel is holding its fourth election in two years on March 23. Rivlin and Netanyahu, both longtime Likud members, have a famously acrimonious personal relationship.