The grandson of Ze'ev Jabotinsky, founder of the Revisionist Movement, announced Sunday he will be joining the Likud.
Party Chairman Benjamin Netanyahu seemed
elated Sunday, at a press conference held in the Likud headquarters in Tel Aviv: "I'm a little overwhelmed. (The Likud) was founded by Ze'ev Jabotinsky. I consider myself his disciple in many ways.
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"I'm very happy that he decided to take time out from his busy life to join us… Things have come full circle. It is a privilege for the Likud to have such a man in its ranks, contributing to both the party and the country," added Netanyahu.
"I admit I'm excited. It's a privilege to join the movement," Ze'ev Jabotinsky told reporters. "The last time Jabotinsky, Begin and Netanyahu served the Jewish public was in World War II, when they tried to save Europe's Jews from annihilation. Today we are a team again and we want to do everything we can to meet the challenges Israel is facing."
(Photo: Yaron Brener)
Israel,
added Jabotinsky, is plagued with the absence of hope: "You can see it in low voter turnout. We hope the new leadership, under Netanyahu, will be able to bring back hope and get the country back on the right track. I consider it a privilege to join the party and shoulder some of the burden," he concluded.
Jabotinsky's induction into the party follows an extensive "shopping spree" by the Likud, during which prominent figures the likes of Dan Meridor,
Benny Begin,
former IDF Chief of Staff Moshe Yaalon,
former Police Commissioner Asaf Hefetz, former Chairman of the Israeli National Security Council Uzi Dayan and General (Ret.) Yossi Peled, also joined the party.
The pressure within the Likud, however, increased several days ago, after the party's legislative committee decided that only the first 20 slots on the party's Knesset roster would be allocated to party members bidding on the national roster.
The decision essentially means that all of the Likud's current MKs, as well as its new members, have been left to bid for the same 20 slots; and with slots 10 and 20 secured for the party's female candidates, the remaining 18 seats leave both seasoned politicians and newcomers in heavy competition.
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