Gilad Erdan Steps Down From IAI Board Amid Signs of Political Comeback

Former minister and ex-Israel ambassador to the United Nations Gilad Erdan told Israel Aerospace Industries board members on Wednesday that he is resigning from the board. The move comes amid reports and speculation that he is considering launching a new right-wing party ahead of the next Knesset election.

According to the reports, Erdan told the board he is “in days of making significant decisions,” and that most of his attention is now focused on that process. The resignation was presented as part of his broader consideration of a return to politics.

Earlier this month, Erdan said at a Jerusalem Post conference in New York that he is making substantial efforts to establish a new right-wing party in Israel. He said the current political system leaves a major gap, and argued that hundreds of thousands of Israelis feel politically homeless.

Erdan said those voters are looking for an alternative because they do not want to depend on the ultra-Orthodox on one side or on the far left and Arab parties on the other. He said the new party’s core principle would be equality and burden-sharing in the state, insisting that everyone must share the national burden, including ultra-Orthodox Jews and Arabs. He added that only people who support that worldview would be members of the party he is forming.