Archiv: Yair Golan


28.04.2026 - 06:46 [ Communist Party of Israel ]

MK Cassif: “Right has found its right-hand man”

When asked if a government could be formed “without the support of MKs Ahmad Tibi or Aida Touma-Sliman” from the Hadash-Ta’al faction, Bennett replied: “We have a large majority even without them.” This statement comes despite a series of recent polls indicating that the Zionist parties opposing Netanyahu are unlikely to secure a majority without the support of Hadash and the Arab parties. (…)

Following the unification, Gadi Eisenkot, leader of the new “Yashar” party, called this morning for a meeting of opposition leaders excluding Hadash and Islamist Ra’am, “in order to ensure victory through Zionist and statesmanlike votes without Arabs.” In his announcement, Eisenkot mentioned the leaders of the “Together” list, Bennett and Lapid, as well as Yisrael Beiteinu chairman MK Avigdor Lieberman and The Democrats leader Yair Golan.

02.03.2026 - 02:39 [ Orly Noy / +972 Magazine ]

We are at war, therefore we are

For these three men — Lapid, Golan, and Bennett — no task is supposedly more urgent than replacing Netanyahu’s blood-soaked, Kahanist government, which has led the country to unprecedented depths. They understand how dangerous he is. They know the devastation another term would bring.

Yet the moment the smell of war fills the air, all these insights evaporate, replaced by automatic reverence to the Israeli war machine. It is as if the very idea that a war can be opposed simply does not exist within their cognitive framework.

09.02.2026 - 19:42 [ Times of Israel ]

Yair Golan says party will seek communications portfolio amid government’s attacks on media

“Netanyahu wants mouthpieces. He wants media outlets that will applaud him while he evades responsibility, praise him while he sacrifices Israel’s security, and remain silent while he protects advisers and aides who betrayed the state and received money from Qatar, the same Qatar that funded Hamas and the October 7 massacre,” Golan says, referring to the ongoing investigation into senior Netanyahu aides accused of lobbying on behlaf of Qatar during Israel’s war against Hamas while being employed by the premier’s office.

“He knows that a free and independent press poses a real threat to a corrupt government built on cover-ups. That is why he seeks to turn news channels into obedient, hollow mouthpieces that avoid criticizing him and his government,” he says.

08.02.2026 - 19:53 [ Ron Kronish / Times of Israel ]

A political party with a vision for our future

(February 5, 2026)

Among other things, he told us that the Democrats already have 60,000 members registered in the party, and are shooting for 100,000 now, which will make us the second-largest political party in Israel in terms of numbers. In addition, he stressed the need to reach out to the Arab citizens of Israel, who make up 22 percent of our population:

There is no future for Israel without Jewish-Arab cooperation in Israeli politics.

This is a critical issue in the political discourse right now, since it is obvious that a new government will not be able to be formed if the so-called “centrist” political parties don’t agree to welcome Arab political parties into the next coalition. So far, only The Democrats have agreed to do so!

08.02.2026 - 19:45 [ Times of Israel ]

Yair Golan vows not to fund settlements if he comes to power

(February 2, 2026)

Asked by the media later in the day about his comments, Golan clarified that he was referring to illegal outposts and unauthorized settlement activity.

“The settlement blocs are part of Israel,” he said after leading a faction meeting in the Knesset. “They will be, because there is no other possibility. We will strengthen settlements along the border, but there will be no illegal activity.”

The international community — with the notable exception of the United States under President Donald Trump — considers Israeli settlements in the West Bank illegal under international law.

08.02.2026 - 19:33 [ New York Times ]

‘We Are Going to Live With Scars’: Yair Golan’s Battle for a Two-State Solution

(February 4, 2026)

We were sitting in his modest office behind a Pizza Hut in a quiet neighborhood in Tel Aviv last September. On the wall was a framed photograph of Rabin shaking the hand of King Hussein of Jordan. I asked Golan whether the rift could be repaired. “We’re like a body that’s been injured. We are going to live with scars. But OK.” He rolled up his shirtsleeves and pointed to a spot where a bullet from the Hezbollah sniper had sliced through his arm. “It’s possible to live with scars,” he said.

06.02.2026 - 21:03 [ Abed Abou Shhadeh / +972 Magazine ]

What the Joint List’s revival signifies for Palestinian politics in Israel

(January 28, 2026)

This is a historic event in a volatile political moment. Even before the publication of polls gauging the Joint List’s electoral strength — predicting that it could secure 15-16 of the Knesset’s 120 seats, making it the third largest force in Israeli politics — the popular demand for unity suggests the possibility for unprecedented voter turnout in Arab society.

Israeli news outlets described the renewal of the Joint List as “drama in the political system,” and rightly so. Such a scenario would alter the balance between opposing blocs and force Zionist parties across the spectrum — from Yair Golan’s center-left Democrats to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud — to recalibrate their strategies.

24.11.2025 - 18:50 [ Times of Israel ]

Protesters in Tel Aviv, including opposition leaders, demand Oct. 7 state inquiry

(November 22, 2025)

The protest was organized for the second straight week by the October Council, which is made up of families who lost loved ones in the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, attack and are demanding a state probe.

In attendance was former prime minister Naftali Bennett, who is considered the most credible challenger to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Also at the protest were Opposition Leader Yair Lapid, and MKs Benny Gantz, Gadi Eisenkot and Yair Golan, all of whom lead centrist or left-wing parties opposed to Netanyahu.

19.09.2025 - 03:05 [ +972 Magazine ]

Israel’s opposition is plotting a return to power. But it remains its own worst enemy

Yet such promises count for little at a time when Israel’s current government continues to bomb, shell, and starve Palestinians in Gaza, all while taking rapid steps toward formally annexing the West Bank. Nor has the opposition — neither its parliamentary representatives, like the Democrats, or the protest movement in the streets — shown the ability to turn growing discontent over the government’s handling of the war and abandonment of the hostages into a full-throated defense of Palestinians’ humanity.

Until they do, it is hard to imagine just how different the next government, whoever comprises it, will be when it comes to the prospect of peace and equality for all the people in this land.

09.08.2025 - 11:34 [ Democrats.org.il ]

מנהיגות אמת לישראל

מפלגת הדמוקרטים בראשות יאיר גולן היא הבית הפוליטי של המחנה הליברלי-דמוקרטי בישראל. המפלגה תאחד את כלל הכוחות והגורמים הדמוקרטיים ותהווה אלטרנטיבה נחושה לממשלה הנוכחית.

24.05.2025 - 00:26 [ Times of Israel ]

Former Israeli Air Force chief Nimrod Sheffer joins Golan’s Democrats party

“I am joining The Democrats today because it is a party with a backbone and public courage. The party that is leading the most determined struggle against the government and offers a path and real hope for Israel,” Sheffer said in a video announcement.

“Yesterday I heard the prime minister — a corrupt, failed man, who brought upon Israel the worst disaster in its history — declare that he does not accept the High Court of Justice ruling,” he said, referring to the decision that found Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s firing of Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar to have been “unlawful” and that barred the premier from involvement in selecting Bar’s successor.

24.05.2025 - 00:23 [ i24news.com ]

Yair Golan blamed by Israeli ministers for Washington terror attack

In the wake of the deadly shooting attack in Washington, DC, Israeli Heritage Minister Amihai Eliyahu charged Democrats Party leader Yair Golan that their „blood is on your hands.“

Golan earlier stirred controversy for slamming the current government as one which „kills babies as a hobby,“ later clarifying that his criticism was aimed at the government, not the Israeli military.

21.05.2025 - 18:53 [ Communist Party of Israel ]

Yair Golan Warns Israel Becoming a Pariah State, Is Killing Children as a Hobby

Politicians from across the Zionist political spectrum, both from the far-right coalition and opposition, condemn Tuesday, May 20, Yair Golan, leader of the Democrats (Labor and Meretz parties) after he declares that Israel was killing children in Gaza “as a hobby.” “Israel is on the way to becoming a pariah state, like South Africa was, if we don’t return to acting like a sane country,” the former major general in the Israeli army said in an interview with the Kan public broadcaster. “And a sane country does not fight against civilians, does not kill children as a hobby, and does not give itself the aim of expelling populations,” he says.

“This government is full of vengeful types with no morals and no ability to run a country in a time of crisis. This endangers our existence,” Golan agreed and called for the far-right government to be replaced “as soon as possible, so that the war can come to an end.” Golan placed direct blame on the government, stating that it is “filled with people who have nothing whatsoever to do with Judaism – Kahanist types, lacking wisdom, morality, and the ability to manage a state during an emergency. This is dangerous to our very existence.”

20.03.2025 - 21:59 [ Times of Israel ]

At Jerusalem protest, Golan calls to throw government in garbage can of history

The Democrats party chairman Yair Golan speaks to thousands of protesters gathered outside the Prime Minister’s Office in Jerusalem to oppose the government’s anticipated dismissal of Shin Bet chief Ronen Bar.

Protesters, many holding umbrellas amid on-and-off rainfall, cheer for Golan as he calls for new elections to replace Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

20.03.2025 - 18:47 [ The Times and the Sunday Times / Youtube ]

Israeli protesters clash with police outside Netanyahu‘s home

Protesters in Jerusalem scuffled with police on Thursday (March 20) following ongoing demonstrations against the Israel government and PM Benjamin Netanyahu.

Footage showed officers clashing with protesters in Azza street and a water cannon being used on some of them. The video also showed Israeli left-wing politician and leader of the Democratic Party Yair Golan falling to the ground.