After an unsuccessful attempt to secure a senior, salaried post in the institutions of the World Zionist Organization, with a rank equivalent to that of a Cabinet minister, Yair Netanyahu, the son of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, will now serve as a member of the Likud Central Committee.
The prime minister’s son, who lives in Miami, was selected to serve as a Central Committee member on behalf of the Ma'aleh Yosef branch, which is affiliated with Knesset member Sasson Guetta, during the most recent Likud conference at which a new Central Committee was chosen. Likud is Israel’s ruling right-wing party, and its Central Committee is a key internal decision-making body.
Unlike other branches across the country, the Ma'aleh Yosef branch, which represents a regional council along Israel’s northern border, did not hold elections, with all sides reaching agreed-upon arrangements. Yair Netanyahu was added to the Central Committee through allocations controlled by Guetta, who apparently sought to help the younger Netanyahu integrate into the party.
On several occasions in the past, Yair Netanyahu has said he has no ambition to run for the Knesset. In recent months, however, he has expressed interest in positions that could suggest he may be considering a future in public life.
Questions have also begun to surface within Likud, focusing mainly on whether his increased public visibility and integration into public roles point to an intention to seek senior political or public positions.
His name first emerged seriously when then-minister Miki Zohar announced his intention to appoint the prime minister’s son to a senior role on his behalf in elections for Zionist institutions. Following sharp criticism and the opposition’s refusal to cooperate, the idea was shelved and the appointment did not take place.