Ehud Barak announces Israeli politics comeback to defeat Benjamin Netanyahu

Ehud Barak, the former prime minister of Israel, has announced that he is returning to politics to try to drive Benjamin Netanyahu out of office.

The 77-year-old former Labour leader has not held the prime minister’s office since 2001 but said he was motivated to defeat the “corrupt and messianic” Netanyahu government.

“The Netanyahu regime must be felled, not saved,” Mr Barak said as he launched a new centre-Left party. “Netanyahu has reached the end.”

Mr Barak’s announcement came at an already chaotic moment in Israeli politics. Mr Netanyahu won an election in April but failed to form a coalition government and instead called an unprecedented second election in September.

This week Mr Netanyahu signaled that he was looking to cancel the second election and try instead to form a unity government with the centrist Blue & White opposition party. However, with no agreement reached it appears the September election will go ahead.

The challenge by Mr Barak is the latest chapter in a long story of camaraderie and rivalry with Mr Netanyahu. 

Mr Netanyahu served as a commando in a special forces unit led by Mr Barak in the 1970s. Mr Barak helped plan the Israeli raid to rescue hostages in Entebbe, during which Mr Netanyahu’s older brother, Yoni, was killed.

Mr Netanyahu became prime minister in 1996 but three years later lost an election to Mr Barak, who was by then a retired general.

During his time in office, Mr Barak took part in Bill Clinton’s Camp David Summit negotiations with Yasser Arafat, the Palestinian leader. The talks are the closest Israelis and Palestinians have come to reaching a peace deal.

Mr Barak lost power in 2001 and temporarily left politics but returned in 2007 and later served as defence minister under Mr Netanyahu. The two men came close to bombing Iran’s nuclear facilities in 2011 but ultimately never gave the order.

It is not clear if Mr Barak will go into the election at head of his own independent party or try to merge with Blue & White or the much diminished Labour party. If he runs independently he may split the anti-Netanyahu vote, potentially helping the prime minister hold onto power.

Despite facing criminal corruption charges, Mr Netanyahu still won the April election and polls show he is likely to win again in September.

Mr Netanyahu’s Likud party was dismissive of Mr Barak’s announcement. “We don’t get involved in how the Left divides its seats,” it said.