Former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett hinted at a possible return to politics in a long tweet on Thursday.

“Three years ago today, I took the oath of allegiance as the 13th Prime Minister of the State of Israel,” he wrote.

Bennett highlighted the new challenges facing the country in the aftermath of the Oct. 7 Hamas attack, saying he has been speaking to many citizens who are in “real despair” and feel an “existential anxiety for the State of Israel.”

Hinting at a return, he said, “We did it then, and we can do it again. We will establish a state here that is worthy of this people,” Bennett declared.

“For a little over a year, I served you, the citizens of Israel, when I was at the head of a government that up until that moment would have seemed impossible.” Bennett outlined the turmoil that surrounded his ascent to Israel’s highest office, including non-stop elections, the COVID-19 pandemic, and an economic crisis.

He highlighted that he was able to bring “ministers from the left and the right decided to put aside all the differences and gather together for the sake of saving the State of Israel” in his successful effort to build a unity government that included an Arab party.

“The establishment of this emergency government, of which I am so proud, was at the time as necessary as breathing air,” he wrote. “It proved that Israel can be taken out of the mud, and even quickly—if only we are together and work together.”

Opposition leader Yair Lapid, head of the Yesh Atid Party, who helped build the unity government with Bennett, responded on X hinting at his willingness to join forces again if his return to politics is serious.

Requests for comment from Bennett’s office by JNS were not immediately forthcoming.

The former prime minister announced a break from politics in the leadup to the November 2022 elections following his handover of the premiership to Lapid.

Since then, he has been fairly active in the public sphere, including speaking on international television on the country’s behalf since the outbreak of the Gaza war.

Following the establishment of the current government, Bennett criticized its plan for judicial reform.

“The full current proposal is dangerous,” he posted on Twitter in Jan. 2023. “It will harm the foundations of the State of Israel, its economy and its citizens, and it may tear the rope that connects us all. That’s why it needs to be fixed. There is only one solution: Sit together, talk, and reach the right change.”

Bennett previously vowed to return to politics, comparing himself to Yitzhak Rabin and Benjamin Netanyahu, both of whom recaptured the premiership after lengthy periods out of office.

“In Israel, we can be recycled. It never ends. Rabin was prime minister from ’74 to ’77 and came back. Bibi [Netanyahu] was prime minister from ’96 to ’99 and he’s back. So, I’ll be back,” said Bennett.

In June 2021, he defected from the right to lead a coalition as part of a power-sharing agreement with Lapid. Bennett described his decision to abandon his right-wing base and join forces with center-left, far-left and Islamist parties as the “best and most Zionist decision in my life.”

Image - JNS-Alex Kolomoisky/POOL