NU-NRP to disband for new Rightist party

Israel's 2nd oldest party to hold press conference announcing new party; move still to be ratified.

By TOVAH LAZAROFF
The National Religious Party, the nation's second oldest, is one step away from becoming obsolete after its leader MK Zevulun Orlev agreed Sunday night to disband it in favor of a newly created right-wing party. The NRP, which was founded to represent the religious Zionist movement, was part of almost every coalition government in the history of the state, even though its popularity began to wane in the 1990s. Only three years ago, it boasted that it had more party members per MK than Labor. Its MKs were often touted as some of the most effective legislators in the Knesset. Still, it earned the wrath of many of its ardent supporters who believed the party waited too long before it pulled out of the coalition to protest the 2005 disengagement from Gaza. A year later, in the 2006 elections - fearful that not enough of those members would rally to allow the party to return to the Knesset - it agreed to run together with the National Union. It made it into the Knesset, but remained in the opposition. Now the NRP has gone one step further, and in the flurry of new party alliances that has heralded this election season, it - along with National Union parties Moledet and Tekuma - agreed to disband after the party heads met Sunday night. MKs belonging to these parties plan to hold a press conference at the Knesset on Monday to announced the dissolution of these parties in favor of a new, yet-to-be-named party. The third party in the National Union, Ahi, has not decided if it will join the new party. It's a move that must be ratified by the central committee of the parties, including the NRP, before it becomes official. Two well-known politicians who have defined the National Union landscape, MKs Effi Eitam and Arye Eldad, have announced that they will not run as part of this new party. Eitam is expected to join the Likud and Eldad, who has long been frustrated with the National Union, is likely to try and create his own party to be called Hatikvah. MK Benny Elon (National Union) said the new party would seek to have both religious and nonreligious representatives, including female ones. "It will be a home for everyone on the Right," he said. Orlev could not be reached for comment. MK Eli Gabai (NRP) urged Orlev not to disband the party without a vote by the central committee. In the Likud, senior sources stressed that Eitam had not been invited to join their party, but that he was welcome to run just like any other candidate. Kadima, in turn, attacked the Likud for its flurry of new right-wing members, such as Benny Begin, who joined the party on Sunday. Kadima said the Likud was now the party of Begin, Eitam and right-wing Likud central committee member Moshe Feiglin.