Israel Beytenu Bars Former Yamina Members Ayelet Shaked and Abir Kara from Party List

As Israel approaches the final stretch before elections, Israel Beytenu is undergoing a renewal by adding new faces from the religious-national sector. However, the party has drawn a clear line regarding the inclusion of former Yamina members. According to a report on ynet, Israel Beytenu's CEO, Inna Zilberger, recently made it unequivocally clear in private discussions that former Yamina representatives, including Ayelet Shaked and Abir Kara, will not be granted a spot on the party's Knesset list.

This firm decision comes despite the positive and close relationships both Shaked and Kara maintain with Israel Beytenu chairman Avigdor Lieberman and faction leader Oded Forer. The veto is particularly notable as Israel Beytenu is actively repositioning itself as a "new Likud," a strategy reflected in the recent addition of figures like Sharon Sharabi and Rafi Ben Shitrit. The party is currently assembling its candidate roster under this ideological banner, which has already incorporated several kippah-wearing members from the religious Zionist community.

Political sources note that recent meetings have established a clear red line against integrating former Yamina members. This exclusion affects Shaked and Kara at a time when both have publicly expressed intentions to consider a political comeback. Shaked, the former justice minister, has emphasized she does not plan to join the new party founded by her former partner Naftali Bennett, criticizing Bennett's alliance with opposition leader Yair Lapid as moving the platform away from its right-wing definition.