Israel's Netanyahu, Gantz See 'Significant Progress' Toward Unity Govt

Former army chief Benny Gantz has agreed to join an 'emergency unity government' with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu | AFP
Former army chief Benny Gantz has agreed to join an 'emergency unity government' with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu | AFP
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Israel's Netanyahu, Gantz See 'Significant Progress' Toward Unity Govt

Former army chief Benny Gantz has agreed to join an 'emergency unity government' with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu | AFP
Former army chief Benny Gantz has agreed to join an 'emergency unity government' with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu | AFP

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his erstwhile rival Benny Gantz on Sunday announced "significant progress" in talks towards forming an emergency unity government amid the novel coronavirus pandemic.

Gantz, whose now fractured centrist Blue and White alliance had positioned itself as the alternative to Netanyahu in three inconclusive elections over the past year, was elected parliament speaker Thursday.

The two men had held talks through the night "aimed at establishing a national emergency government to deal with the corona crisis and the additional challenges facing the State of Israel," said a joint statement from Blue and White and Netanyahu's Likud.

"Significant progress was made during the meeting," it added.

"During the course of the day, an additional meeting will be held in order to come to a finalized agreement."

Gantz was tasked with forming a government following the March 2 vote -- something he had been unable to do after two elections last year.

There was no guarantee he would succeed this time, given a lack of cohesion within the anti-Netanyahu bloc.

The divided anti-Netanyahu forces, who held a narrow majority in the Knesset, Israel's parliament, forced the ouster this week of speaker Yuli Edelstein, a member of Netanyahu's Likud party.

Gantz then put himself forward as speaker, triggering the break-up of Blue and White, with two key partners -- the Telem and Yesh Atid parties -- accusing Gantz of surrendering "without a fight" to Netanyahu.

Gantz and Netanyahu had both previously voiced support for a unity government to combat the coronavirus pandemic, which has so far seen over 3,800 Israelis infected, including 12 deaths.

There were no official details of the makeup of a future government, but Netanyahu has in past weeks proposed 18-month premiership terms -- with him taking the first, to be followed by Gantz.

The veteran premier, in office since 2009, was in January charged with bribery, fraud, and breach of trust, with the start of his trial delayed due to the virus pandemic.

Netanyahu denies the charges.



Zelenskiy Approves Bill 'Preserving Independence' of Anti-corruption Bodies

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy attends a press conference on the first day of the two-day Ukraine Recovery Conference (URC2025), on plans for the reconstruction of Ukraine, in Rome, Italy, July 10, 2025. REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane/File Photo
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy attends a press conference on the first day of the two-day Ukraine Recovery Conference (URC2025), on plans for the reconstruction of Ukraine, in Rome, Italy, July 10, 2025. REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane/File Photo
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Zelenskiy Approves Bill 'Preserving Independence' of Anti-corruption Bodies

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy attends a press conference on the first day of the two-day Ukraine Recovery Conference (URC2025), on plans for the reconstruction of Ukraine, in Rome, Italy, July 10, 2025. REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane/File Photo
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy attends a press conference on the first day of the two-day Ukraine Recovery Conference (URC2025), on plans for the reconstruction of Ukraine, in Rome, Italy, July 10, 2025. REUTERS/Guglielmo Mangiapane/File Photo

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy approved draft legislation on Thursday that he said would restore the independence of the country's anti-corruption agencies, reversing course after an outburst of public criticism.

Measures enacted earlier this week that established greater control by the prosecutor general, a political appointee, over the two bodies had fuelled rare wartime protests and had thrown Kyiv's EU bid into question.

Zelenskiy said on X he had approved the draft for submission to parliament later in the day, Reuters reported.

"It is important that we are maintaining unity. It is important that we are preserving independence. It is important that we respect the position of all Ukrainians," he said.

Zelenskiy, whose image as a tireless leader of the three-year-old war against Russia's invasion has been tarnished by the controversy, said the text of the new bill is "well-balanced".

He did not give further details, saying only that it "guarantees real strengthening of Ukraine's law enforcement system, independence of anti-corruption agencies, and reliable protection...against any Russian influence".

On Monday, security forces arrested two anti-corruption officials on suspicion of ties to Russia and launched sweeping searches of other employees.

Critics had decried the measures putting a Zelenskiy-appointed prosecutor in control over the anti-corruption agencies, saying they went too far and looked like political pressure against the agencies.

Opposition lawmakers had collected enough signatures to register their own legislation to revoke the restrictive measures, which had been fast-tracked with help from Zelenskiy's ruling party.

It was not immediately clear how soon parliament, which was meant to start its summer holiday this week, would consider either bill.

The European officials expressed strong criticism over changes curbing the authority of the anti-corruption bodies and on Thursday welcomed an earlier pledge by Zelenskiy to retain their independence.