Senior charedi figures signaled a major political shift Wednesday, declaring an end to their longstanding automatic alignment with Prime Minister Binyomin Netanyahu and indicating they may be open to working with other political figures, including Naftali Bennett and Avigdor Lieberman.

The remarks came during a series of media appearances ahead of expected elections, as charedi representatives publicly distanced themselves from the right-wing bloc.

Motty Babchik, a key Agudas Yisrael figure close to MK Yitzchak Goldknopf, said in an interview with i24NEWS that the “right-wing bloc” is effectively finished and that the automatic partnership with Netanyahu has come to an end.

Babchik pointed to the ongoing dispute over the draft law and economic sanctions affecting the charedi community, stating that “there is no more bloc.”

He argued that Netanyahu never intended to pass the draft legislation and had misled his charedi partners for years. Citing Hagaon Rav Dov Landau, he said Netanyahu had been called “a liar,” adding that many in the charedi public feel betrayed after providing the prime minister with a political “safety net.”

Babchik also criticized Aryeh Deri and Moshe Gafni for not acting earlier to bring down the government. He said he would not rule out the possibility that charedi parties could, in the future, join forces with Bennett, Lieberman, or other candidates, depending on the sector’s interests.

“If Bennett calls on September 2 — we’ll talk on September 2!” Babchik said, underscoring the shift in approach.

MK Yitzchok Pindrus delivered a similar message in an interview on Channel 14’s “The Patriots,” stating that “our relationship with the bloc has ended.”

When asked about the possibility of aligning with left-wing parties, Pindrus replied, “we’ll examine what the cost of that would be.”

He also did not rule out supporting a state commission of inquiry into the massacre, saying, “we will do everything we can to protect the Torah world.” He added that “the legal system has opened a war against us because of the partnership with Netanyahu.”

The interviews came as Coalition Chairman Ofir Katz submitted a bill, together with coalition faction leaders, to dissolve the 25th Knesset, with the date of elections to be determined in discussions by the Knesset Committee.

{Matzav.com}