Yair Lapid says the time has come for the “one on whose watch the greatest calamity in the history of [Israel] occurred to leave us alone”, adding, “those who fail like this cannot continue”.

At the beginning of a meeting of the centrist Yesh Atid party, Lapid said: “It’s time for this government to release us from its punishment.”

Since the October 7 Hamas attack, Lapid has shared his disapproval of PM Benjamin Netanyahu and called for his replacement.

Last month, Lapid had written on X: “We need to establish a national reconstruction government. Likud will lead it, Netanyahu and the extremists will be replaced, [and] over 90 members of the Knesset will be partners in the coalition for healing and reconnection.”