Netanyahu, Gantz set to hold fateful meeting

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Alternate Prime Minister Benny Gantz will hold a long awaited meeting on Tuesday in an effort to resolve their ongoing dispute over the state budget.The leaders of Likud and Blue and White have been fighting over whether to pass one state budget or two by the end of the year. Gantz has threatened to initiate an election or a different government with the current Knesset if a budget is not passed for 2021.Reaching out to Netanyahu in a Knesset session about Israel’s normalization agreement with Bahrain, Gantz said: “The people of Israel expect us to make internal peace. We both know the 2021 budget is almost ready, and I cannot ignore it. Time is running out to prevent an economic crisis and do what is right for the people of Israel.”Responding to Gantz’s warning that Netanyahu is “committing a crime against the economy,” opposition leader Yair Lapid tweeted to Gantz, asking whether he would do something about it or “surrender again like you usually do?”Earlier Tuesday, the Israel Hayom newspaper, which is seen as close to Netanyahu, reported that the prime minister does not intend to compromise on the budget. The report, which was headline “Campaign 2021 has begun,” said Netanyahu would prefer that the Knesset disperse and initiate an election in March, but the prime minister is ready for it to happen in December.

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