Netanyahu backed out of Sharm el-Sheikh summit to avoid angering ultra-Orthodox lawmakers, official says

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu backed out of Monday’s summit in Sharm El-Sheikh in order to avoid angering religious coalition members, a senior official in the Prime Minister’s Office tells The Times of Israel.

“We did not travel because of the holiday that was coming in,” the official says of the Simhat Torah holiday, which began around 6 p.m. on Monday evening, shortly after US President Donald Trump’s speech wrapped up at the Knesset.

“It simply went over time,” says the official. “We wanted to go. We planned to go. But what happened is that the speeches went on, Trump, who wasn’t scheduled to speak for more than an hour, spoke for more than an hour, the prime minister spoke for almost an hour, the Knesset speaker spoke for almost an hour.”

“We also have other people that we need to respect and take them into account on religious matters,” the senior official says, likely referencing ultra-Orthodox parties. “They are part of the coalition and we have to take that into account.”

The decision not to fly to the summit on the future of Gaza had nothing to do with wanting to avoid being photographed with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, says the official.

“We knew that Abu Mazen would be there,” says the official of the decision to initially agree to go, using Abbas’s nom de guerre. “It’s simply not true. There is no connection to Abu Mazen.”