Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday night promised to establish a “broad national government” after elections in October, using a press conference largely devoted to defending his handling of the wars in Gaza, Lebanon and Iran to attempt to rebrand himself.

His talk of seeking consensus and unity appeared at first glance to presage a potential departure from his current and longtime reliance on a coalition of right-wing and ultra-Orthodox parties, and echoed language increasingly used by several centrist rivals.

But political analysts say Netanyahu’s appeal was aimed less at seeking post-election partnerships with opposition party leaders than at persuading moderate Likud and center-right voters that he — rather than rising rivals including Yashar chief Gadi Eisenkot — is best positioned to lead a broad Zionist governing coalition after the election.

The goal, said one analyst, was to raise his current coalition’s poor polling — it is currently headed for some 52 seats in the 120-member Knesset. But he would likely stick with the same far-right and ultra-Orthodox allies if the gambit proved successful and he was reelected.

“There are forces among us that want to bring about a rupture within our society, that want to exacerbate and deepen misunderstandings, disagreements and divisions among us. And I think that is a terrible mistake,” Netanyahu said Saturday.

“I intend to establish a broad national government. Not a narrow government, not a left-wing government that would be dependent on Arab parties, but a broad national government. Because only in that way, I believe, can we reach agreements among ourselves,” he continued.

Netanyahu said the coalition he aimed to build would require “ending boycotts” between political camps and would be constructed around what he described as broad public agreement on several key issues, including preventing a “civil war” over divisive domestic issues such as ultra-Orthodox enlistment and opposition to the establishment of a Palestinian state.

He said his prospective government would be open to anyone who shares core principles, including that Israel is the nation-state of the Jewish people, respect for individual rights, a free and technologically advanced economy, and Israel’s ability to defend itself independently.

“In my view, there is far more unity among the people than what you see in the Knesset. Much more. I believe there is broad agreement on many issues,” the prime minister said during the press conference, in response to a question on his promise of a broad national coalition.

He argued that Israelis widely agree on the need to avoid internal conflict. “People do not want to see a civil war. I am certain of that. There are those who are trying to inflame it and deepen the divisions within the public. I want to do everything possible to calm things down,” he said. A divisive figure who has demonized political opponents as “dangerous leftists,” and is pushing a raft of divisive legislation, Netanyahu acknowledged no personal responsibility for national disunity.

Referring to reported incidents of threats of violence against Haredi demonstrators during recent mass protests against ultra-Orthodox conscription, Netanyahu said, “Someone pulled out a gun, and I believe a woman was injured. We do not want to get there.”

He did not mention violence by Haredi protesters, including recent attacks on the home of Deputy Supreme Court Chief Justice Noam Sohlberg and other top officials involved in enforcing the law against draft evaders.

He also issued a curious critique of those who would ostensbly send police into “Haredi hesder” yeshivas to arrest students for not drafting, saying this would simply prevent Haredi men from ever wanting to serve: “We have seen an enormous response from the Haredi........

© The Times of Israel