Yair Netanyahu Warns Yosef Haddad and Ofer Winter Against Splitting Right-Wing Votes

Yair Netanyahu, son of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has publicly warned Yosef Haddad and retired Brigadier General Ofer Winter, leaders of the new "Amcha Israel" party, against running separately in the upcoming elections. He urged them to unite with Minister Bezalel Smotrich to avoid splitting the right-wing vote. Yair Netanyahu outlined three possible scenarios if Haddad and Winter run independently, all of which he claims would benefit the opposing coalition led by figures such as Gadi Eisenkot, Yair Golan, and Mansour Abbas.

The first scenario is that "Amcha Israel" fails to pass the electoral threshold, wasting right-wing votes and enabling the opposition to form a government. The second is that they pass the threshold but cause Smotrich's party to fall below it, again empowering the opposition. The third is that neither party passes the threshold, handing victory to the opposition. Yair Netanyahu emphasized that these outcomes are mathematical certainties, not personal opinions, and warned that Haddad and Winter would be remembered like the "Tnua HaTchiya" party, which he claims brought about the Oslo Accords.

Yosef Haddad recently announced his entry into politics with the launch of "Amcha Israel," aiming to reestablish the Ministry of Public Diplomacy with a large budget. He stated his goal to become the first Arab member of Israel's security cabinet, leveraging his background to challenge the security establishment from within. Alongside Winter, whom he introduced as the future defense minister, Haddad pledged to work toward decisive victories on all fronts.

The political context involves the upcoming 2026 elections, with Haddad and Winter positioning themselves as new right-wing alternatives. Yair Netanyahu's intervention highlights internal tensions within the right-wing bloc about vote fragmentation and its potential consequences for government formation.