Netanyahu cameos in new single with pop star as elections loom

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu cameos in a new duet rendition of an Israeli classic with pop star Eden Ben Zaken, in perhaps the latest sign that elections are once again around the corner.

“I was thrilled to enlist with the amazing singer Eden Ben Zaken to perform the song ‘Yesh Bi Ahava’ (‘Got Love in Me’) to raise funds for the Ken LaZaken organization that assists with the well-being of the elderly,” Netanyahu tweeted, linking to the music video.

“I am excited to see the younger generation showing up, in accordance with health guidelines, for the sake of grandparents, for the sake of populations grappling with loneliness. I call on everyone who can to join in this effort,” he added. “There are vaccines for the coronavirus, but there is no vaccine for loneliness. It’s in our hands.”

Ben Zaken, 26, sings most of the duet by the late singer-songwriter Arik Einstein, but Netanyahu appears toward the end of the song, hitting all the notes of the chorus.

But the performance struck a wrong chord for some. Yisrael Beytenu party chairman Avigdor Liberman said that Netanyahu was raising funds for an organization that addresses a problem his own policies have helped create.

“Maybe instead of singing, the government will pursue a policy that supports the elderly and will not force Holocaust survivors and the elderly to live on donations and food parcels,” the right-wing opposition lawmaker said in a statement.

The song was released a day after the Knesset House Committee set March 16 as the potential date for Israelis to go to the polls, advancing legislation to dissolve the parliament as the country continued its slide toward its fourth elections in two years.