Angry Likudniks in South forming war party to deal with Hamas

Ran Levy, an Ashkelon pharmacist who is an IDF reserve major, began the process of registering the party, which will be called Hadromim - "The Southerners."

By GIL STERN STERN HOFFMAN
DOZENS OUT of 86 new bomb shelters are being placed along streets in towns near the Gaza Strip over the weekend. They are an anonymous contribution made by a major donor from Keren Hayesod-United Israel Appeal, for the residents of the South. (photo credit: AVI HAYOUN)
DOZENS OUT of 86 new bomb shelters are being placed along streets in towns near the Gaza Strip over the weekend. They are an anonymous contribution made by a major donor from Keren Hayesod-United Israel Appeal, for the residents of the South.
(photo credit: AVI HAYOUN)
Likud Central Committee members from the South have gotten so fed up with years of rocket attacks from the Gaza Strip and socioeconomic problems that they have decided to form a new party to deal with Hamas.
Ran Levy, an Ashkelon pharmacist who is an IDF reserve major, began the process of registering the party and opened a Facebook page. He said he hopes to have the party, which will be called Hadromim (“The Southerners”) ready for the next election.
“We in the South are sick of the situation,” he said.
“There is no one today who cares about the South, not even Amir Peretz, who lives in Sderot. We have been under fire for 14 years. The only solution is capturing Gaza. Everything else is just cosmetic.”
Asked why he does not just shift his support to an existing party to the right of the Likud, he said that though they have called for capturing the Gaza strip, Yisrael Beytenu leader Avigdor Liberman and Bayit Yehudi chairman Naftali Bennett did not resign in protest when the security cabinet decided otherwise.
“Liberman and Bennett just talk, when we need immediate action,” he said.
“They have just as much responsibility for the situation as Netanyahu, because they have not quit. The Likud street is boiling. MKs told me not to leave. But as long as Netanyahu is the chairman of the party, I can’t stay.”
Levy has been a member of the Likud for 25 years and is a top activist in the central committee. He said he has been convincing many of his friends in the party to join him.
Deputy Defense Minister Danny Danon, who chairs the Likud central committee, responded that Levy’s frustration is justified, but the place to deal with such problems is inside the Likud. He said he invited Levy to address the next central committee meeting in two weeks in Ariel. Netanyahu is expected to attend the meeting.
“Netanyahu will hear harsh criticism at the meeting,” Danon said. “We need to stop stuttering and instead go to war with Hamas.”