The birthday of the Deputy Prime Minister’s Deputy Prime Minister Yair Lapid, Hillel Kobrinsky, revealed a little about the secret of the man’s power. On his eve in Savyon, on the same lawn where the political agreements for the establishment of Blue and White were signed, on the eve of the establishment of the project in the first 2019 elections, businessmen, Prime Minister Bennett, President Herzog, US Ambassador to Israel Tom Mobils, Lapid of course, and other ministers and others. Those present at the party say that even the retirement crisis of MK Jida Rinawi Zoabi, which erupted a few hours earlier, did not overshadow the celebration.
Kobrinsky is an entrepreneur and founder of Yesh Atid, and since then he has been in the very close circle of decision-makers around Lapid: from coalition agreements, through the ongoing maintenance of the party and the coalition to the strategic decisions of the alternate prime minister. At Yesh Atid’s party in 2014, Lapid testified about him: “Hillel built Yesh Atid from scratch.”
Hillel Kobrinsky / Photo: Tamuz Rahman
When Lapid served as finance minister, Kobrinsky participated in budget discussions and was present at the Ministry of Finance while still active in the business world, which caused much criticism in the ministry, and later led to the State Comptroller’s review. This time, with the formation of the current government, Kobrinsky is careful to stay behind the scenes and is known as “Lapid’s adviser.”
“Every Knesset member and minister knows that if you want to promote something, you go through Kobrinsky,” one of the party members told Globes this week. The close adviser does not walk the Knesset corridors and is not involved in routine voting, but in horizontal moves. “He brings out and brings in,” the party man added. “If a Knesset member wants to promote a move, he should turn to Hillel.” Reports of his presence at party meetings at headquarters have a contradictory future, some of the people we spoke to claimed he attended from time to time, and some testified that he was in smaller forums along with Lapid, Danny Wesley and the deputy prime minister’s office – Naama Schultz.
In recent weeks, in light of the crisis with RAAM, the coalition claims that Kobrinsky was called to pull the strings due to his good relations with Mansour Abbas. The relationship began on the eve of the election. Kobrinsky, it turns out, recognized the potential Abbas for the formation of the government, and today he is one of the members of Lapid who conceives the regular maintenance tasks of RAAM in the coalition, with the Deputy Director General of the Alternative Prime Minister’s Office at the front.
Knesset Plenum, 23.5 / Photo: Noam Moskowitz, Knesset Spokeswoman
Kobrinsky does not receive a salary from the party and is not in an official position on behalf of Lapid in the Foreign Ministry. Therefore, he also does not hold a conflict of interest agreement, which clarifies the nature of his occupations, as required by the Ministry of Justice from senior positions. This dissonance creates a situation where on the one hand the businessman Kobrinsky manages companies and invests in the high-tech worlds, and on the other hand a component of governments, a crisis manager at the national level, in charge of a party and considered very close to a man holding the government functioning. His close relationship with Shalom Shlomo, the cabinet secretary, also helps.
During the election days Kobrinsky is the commander in the field, staff budgets and activities go through him, as well as meetings with reviewers and publicists. During the days of the current government, he was the representative on Lapid’s behalf at the negotiation meetings, some of which were held in his offices in Raanana. In the establishment of Blue and White in 2019, the agreements with Ganz and Ya’alon were signed in the yard of his home in Savyon. Bish Atid said he was a political man: “He made a lot of money in citizenship and does not want a salary but works for ideological motives.” They further added that he is a “decent and serious person”. Kobrinsky’s compliments cross political camps. Everyone who spoke with him for the purpose of preparing the article testified that he is a pleasant person and one who is pleasant to work with.
Inauguration of the 24th Knesset, Bnei Gantz, Michael Bitton / Photo: Alex Kolomoisky-Yedioth Ahronoth
So what is he involved in these days other than coalition preservation missions? Political sources said he was involved in Lapid’s attempts to appoint a chairman of the Jewish Agency (moves that have been frozen in the meantime), and also in the appointment of a chairman of the Electric Company by advising the people of Minister Karin Elharar. It is alleged that it was Kobrinsky who brought up the names of Dov Bahrav and Danny Benvenisti as candidates for the position, since they come from the worlds of technology companies, which Kobrinsky recognizes as his second hat in the business world.
Moreover, according to other sources, Kobrinsky managed to leverage the political world into the business world. Jared Kushner, who until recently served as an adviser and right-hand man to former U.S. President Donald Trump, is investing in a company owned by Kobrinsky. Alternatively, the business sector’s support for Lapid stems from its partnership with Kobrinsky. “Lapid was not a businessman at any stage and is not identified with this world. Hillel, on the other hand, comes from there and creates these connections for him, “the senior official added.
From time to time there are reports of a cooling in the Lapid-Kobrinsky relationship, and allegations of his removal from the inner circle. “This is a spin designed to relieve pressure from Kobrinsky,” one of the people we spoke to claimed in a sweeping way. “It’s called a seasonal disconnect.” Kobrinsky, according to the source and others: “Involved in all coalition contacts, in compiling a list of Yesh Atid, in all appointments of ministers in Bish Atid, including appointments in more distant circles of the ministers themselves.”
Mish Atid reported: Hillel Kobrinsky is a key partner in founding the Yesh Atid party. A valued and Zionist person who cares about the future of the country. His values and military and managerial experience have contributed greatly to the party for a decade. Kobrinsky conducted the negotiations to form a government on behalf of Yesh Atid in both 2013 and the current government. Kobrinsky does not hold an official position, but serves as a close member, adviser to the deputy prime minister and deals with the maintenance of the coalition and the success of the government.
Between Bitton and Zoabi
The transition between the threats of MK Jadia Rinawi Zoabi and those of the chairman of the Economics Committee, Michael Bitton, this week – were just the promo for next week’s events in the coalition. The deputy prime minister, Yair Lapid, managed to bring Rinawi Zoabi back to the coalition but not to Meretz, where they are still angry about the Knesset member’s latest moves. “This is how it is when you are not elected to the list and do not grow in the party,” she was vigorously accused of not addressing her. “She turned us overnight from an ideologue party to an extortionist party.” On the other hand, Bitton receives full support from the chairman of his party, Gantz.
Jida Rinawi Zoabi / Photo: Danny Shem Tov, Spokeswoman for the Knesset
In practice, Bitton’s threats at this stage do not really bother the coalition leaders, who receive full backing from the members of the joint list (except for laws concerning the army and state) and are in no hurry to comply with his demands. On the other hand, this week it was amazing to see how MK Rinawi Zoabi, just a day after receiving her request, refused to support a law that would allow scholarships for veterans, and as a result RAAM was also absent from the plenum. A day later, Mansour Abbas could also breathe a sigh of relief, when he received, at his request, and especially his threats, backed by Lapid and the director of his office, Naama Schultz, approval by the Finance Committee to release NIS 740 million from the Arab sector’s five-year plan funds.
In blue and white they were furious at the incompetence of the prime ministers, who had known about Bitton’s demands for two weeks but did not bother to resolve the tangle. Just last week, Bennett met with Bitton and promised to address and bridge the demands between him and the transport and agriculture ministers – but nothing was done. While the members of the RAAM take care of silk gloves, the concrete is allowed to continue to shout, and continue as usual.
Other financial demands that the coalition fails to meet as easily as they meet the demands of Arab Knesset members are in favor of dealing with the storm damage in Tiberias. A few days before the start of the tourist season, the promenade in the city is still destroyed and the municipality claims that they need tens of millions in favor of the rapid rehabilitation in the area.
But in the background, Shaked’s promises for a triple budget from the Ministry of the Interior, Tourism and the Negev and the Galilee have not yet matured into a government decision, and some ministries have claimed that they do not know the requirements at all or that there is a possibility of implementation soon. The person who raised the issue for discussion this week in the Knesset plenum was MK Ofir Sofer, a resident of the north. “I ask where is the Zoebi of Tiberias? The tourism industry in Tiberias is central and has been faltering for about two years due to the corona, “he claimed.” Such a third summer will be fatal for businesses in Tiberias. “
Back to the political troubles. In blue and white, they emphasize that they will insist on reforming the reforms, but will not overthrow the government – so in practice they will contribute theirs to the paralysis of the coalition. “Ganz could have always formed a government with the Likud,” people around him said. “He has not done that until now and will not overthrow the government.” Evidently, Ganz could easily lead to the dissolution of the government by evacuating Chumash at this time following the High Court, but he announced that he would not do so. The considerations are of course political. Their request was to delay until the break in the segment of events under their control.
Next week, it will be decided whether the coalition’s 60 members will seek survival or disband. On Sunday, the traditional flag parade will march in Jerusalem on the occasion of the liberation of the city, as it is expected to pass through the Nablus Gate. The security tension created around the incident in the face of terrorist organizations’ threats is combined with the warnings of politicians on the left and the fresh memory of the wall guard events that began that day with missiles on the Israeli capital is the setting. In practice, there is a real security fear of a flare-up, and the political arena fears that it will lead the Arab members of the coalition or the last survivors on the right out of the coalition.
Meanwhile, behind the scenes, ongoing contacts between the Likud (and mediators) and members of Tikva Hadasha. Saar’s party emphasizes that they are going together, but the veto on a government led by Netanyahu is fading, according to those involved in the talks. The discussion revolves around the Likud armor, positions in the future government and more, but the negotiations have not yet “matured”. Both sides argue that the fact that there has been no progress this week does not mean that next week there will be no breakthrough. The background and the circumstances, are what later created the ripening of the contacts that take place in the background anyway, with one big and significant reservation: Gideon Saar constantly emphasizes in the conversations he holds that he does not trust Netanyahu and he fears that he will be “acted out.” However, there are those in the coalition who believe that “it is only a matter of time before a right-wing government is formed.”