Yesh Atid Lawmaker Defends Party Amid Senior Departures

Merav Ben Ari, a Member of Knesset for the Yesh Atid party, has publicly defended the party and its leader, Yair Lapid, amidst a wave of senior resignations. She characterized the decision of veteran lawmakers Meir Cohen, Mickey Levy, and Karin Elharrar not to seek re-election as a "praiseworthy leadership step."

"The founding generation of Yesh Atid made a brave decision. Outstanding Knesset members who held many positions decided it was time to refresh the ranks. They did so with heavy but whole hearts, for us, because they understood the gravity of the hour," Ben Ari wrote in a post. She strongly criticized coalition members, contrasting them with her party's representatives. "There are Knesset members in this Knesset who sit for years, make deals, and are enslaved to a leader, just so they don't have to face real life. Power has turned them into nonentities, where are they and where are our Knesset members?"

Ben Ari expressed frustration with media coverage, which she believes frames the departures as a "desertion" or "tragedy" to diminish Lapid and Yesh Atid. She asserted that each departing member has clarified they are not leaving the party but making way for others and will continue fighting to replace the government.

She praised the internal cohesion and integrity of the Yesh Atid faction, drawing a comparison to her previous experience in the Kulanu party. "Where is there a party like this where everything said in faction meetings stays in the room? Where no Knesset member briefs against their colleague? As someone who was in another party, I can tell you there are no such people and no leader like Yair Lapid, who has more courage and leadership in his little finger than any minister in the government," she stated.