Lapid: We had a compromise on overhaul with PM before he caved to Levin and Ben Gvir

Opposition chair Yair Lapid tells the Kan public broadcaster that he and other leaders in his bloc were close to reaching an 11th-hour agreement with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu regarding the judicial overhaul but that Justice Minister Yariv Levin and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir blocked its finalization.

“Ben Gvir and Levin entered the room, banged on the table and Netanyahu capitulated to them,” Lapid says.

The opposition chair says the agreement would’ve seen a one-and-a-half-year pause in overhaul legislation that would’ve been codified into law.

“Not an agreement, but a law, because I don’t believe a word Netanyahu says,” Lapid explains.

During that period, the sides would resume talks brokered by President Isaac Herzog aimed at reaching a compromise on judicial reform.

If the sides manage to reach broad agreements during that time, the relevant legislation would be advanced, Lapid says, adding that such a freeze is his condition for any talks with the coalition moving forward.

Lapid adds that it’ll take years to repair the damage caused by the coalition this week when it rammed the first overhaul bill through the Knesset.