Jerusalem (AFP) - Former Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman, known for his hard-line positions and failure to make concessions, seeks to play a pivotal role in the negotiations aimed at forming an Israeli government capable of turning the page on Benjamin Netanyahu's politics.

Published on: 09/11/2026 - 18:31

For three decades, Lieberman's name (68 years old) has been associated with Israeli political life, in a career during which he was known for his metaphors inspired by the game of chess that he plays.

In recent years, Lieberman has been a staunch advocate of secularism in the face of the growing influence of the far right. But the irony is that he is extending his hand today to this segment of society, despite the opposition of his electoral base, in order to end Netanyahu’s career in power, a goal that he considers more urgent.

Lieberman has always linked his political future to the outgoing Prime Minister, as he was the first director of Netanyahu's office when he assumed the presidency in 1996, before becoming Minister of Foreign Affairs and then Minister of Defense.

The relationship between them gradually turned toward estrangement against the backdrop of competition for the leadership of the right, as well as fundamental differences regarding the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank, and the relationship with the extremist Haredi parties.

Although Lieberman's "Israel Our Home" party only won seven seats (out of 120) in the Knesset as a result of the recent elections, it is considered a cornerstone of the opposition bloc led by Gadi Eisenkot, who is charged with forming the new government, to the extent that it has become able to impose its conditions.

Last week, Lieberman surprised his allies by announcing that he was withdrawing his objection to an alliance with the Haredi parties, stressing his willingness to make concessions regarding the principle of compulsory military service for everyone, including religious institute students.

This position also allows him to avoid any agreement with the Arab parties with which he strongly opposes cooperation, even though they announced their willingness to support Eisenkot after winning 19 seats in the future parliament.

- Secularism and security -

Avigdor Lieberman was born in Moldova, and immigrated to Israel in 1978, where he performed military service and worked for a period as a bouncer in a nightclub.

After obtaining a degree in political science, he joined the Likud Party, the most prominent Israeli right-wing party, and rose in it until he became director of Netanyahu’s office during his first term as prime minister (1996-1999).

After that, in 1999, he founded his right-wing party, “Israel Our Home,” benefiting from the votes of about a million Israelis who, like him, immigrated from the former Soviet Union. In the subsequent stages, he worked to expand this electoral base that supported him.

He assumed the position of Defense Minister in Netanyahu's government in 2016, but resigned in 2018 in protest against a ceasefire agreement with Hamas in the Gaza Strip, describing it as a "surrender to terrorism."

His resignation contributed to the disintegration of the government coalition and the call for new elections.

Between 2021 and 2022, he assumed the position of Finance Minister in the government of Naftali Bennett, and became one of the harshest critics of Netanyahu's policy, holding him in particular responsible for the failure to prevent the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023.

Lieberman is married and has three children. He often mentions that his wife is a religious Jew, stressing that his secularism is not opposed to religion, but rather confronts what he sees as attempts to establish a religious system of government in the Hebrew state.

He lives in a settlement in the West Bank, but he does not call for the annexation of these territories occupied by Israel since 1967. He announced his support for subjecting part of the region to Jordanian control and canceling the Oslo Accords.

Regarding the future of the Gaza Strip, Lieberman stresses the necessity of “the army completely eliminating the Hamas movement, both its military and civilian sides,” and then transferring control of the Strip to “an external party responsible for its administration.”

© 2026 AFP

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