Natan Netanyahu, a cousin of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and a professor at Bar-Ilan University, has announced that he is resigning from the Likud party and will not vote for it in the ongoing elections.
Netanyahu, who was a Likud member for many years, wrote on X that the party had moved away from its core values and deepened divisions in Israeli society.
He criticised the government on four main issues: weakening democratic institutions through judicial reform, security failures surrounding the October 7 events, insufficient support for citizens and its refusal to take responsibility.
Netanyahu said the government’s intervention in the judicial system and in institutions responsible for oversight had damaged public trust.
“The government was warned again and again, but even during the war it continued its attacks on the foundations of the democratic system,” he said.
He also criticised attempts to exempt ultra-Orthodox Jews from military service, arguing that the government was undermining the principle of sharing the burden equally to preserve its coalition partners.
Netanyahu said the government’s refusal to establish a state investigative commission to examine the events of October 7 reflected its unwillingness to provide accountability to the public.
He announced that he was ending his Likud membership and said: “I will not vote for Likud under its current leadership. I will consider renewing my party membership when leadership is elected that is free from these failures.”
