Lapid, Golan meet to coordinate ‘joint moves for the opposition’ after Golan’s ‘killing babies’ comments

In an apparent attempt at reconciliation, Opposition Leader Yair Lapid meets with The Democrats chairman Yair Golan to discuss ongoing coordination between the opposition parties, just under a week after Lapid publicly excoriated Golan for stating that Israel was killing babies in Gaza “as a hobby.”

“The meeting was good and dealt with continuing to coordinate joint moves for the opposition parties,” spokespeople for Golan and Lapid say in identical statements.

Lapid was one of many coalition and opposition politicians who condemned Golan’s statement last week, arguing that the use of such rhetoric was “a gift to our enemies.”

Following Golan’s statement, which the former IDF deputy chief of staff later said was directed at the government and not the military, Shas leader Aryeh Deri called on the leaders of the opposition to “unequivocally disavow Yair Golan and make it clear to the public that under no circumstances will they form a government with him.”

Despite the widespread outrage over Golan’s statement, a Channel 12 poll published yesterday showed The Democrats with 13 seats were elections to take place now, a loss of only one seat since the previous poll, leaving them in third place behind Bennett 2026 and Likud. Yesh Atid only garnered 9 seats.

Last week, a spokesperson for Lapid announced that he would hold a meeting in his Knesset office this Wednesday with the heads of the “Zionist opposition parties” to discuss efforts against the government’s draft exemptions for Haredi men. It remains unclear if this meeting is still on the agenda and if Golan will participate.