Gesher (), officially the Gesher National Social Movement (, Gesher – Teno'a Hevratit Le'umit), was a political party in Israel between 1996 and 2003. It formed when David Levy led a split from the Israeli center-right party Likud. Gesher helped to form coalition governments led by both Likud and the left-wing Labor Party, but never gained significant power. The party was eventually disbanded as Levy returned to Likud. In 2019, David Levy's daughter, Orly Levy set up a similar party named Gesher, which advocates for many of the same policies supported by her father.
History
Foundation
Gesher was founded by David Levy on 11 March 1996 as a breakaway from the Likud party during the thirteenth Knesset, after Levy lost the Likud leadership election to Benjamin Netanyahu.
Levy refused to accept Netanyahu as the new Likud chairman. Netanyahu's management tactics angered many Likud supporters while his right-wing rhetoric gained the confidence of Ariel Sharon, Benny Begin, and other hard-line party members. Levy knew that if he were cowed by his opponent, his supporters would either join Netanyahu's camp in order to oppose the new Oslo Accords, or support a more socialist candidate. He also knew that Netanyahu would not be willing to give him one of the top four ministries should Likud return to power after Levy's disastrous term as foreign minister.
Levy believed he could cause a mass defection of Members of Knesset (MKs) from Likud in hopes that lead senior members in Likud's Central Committee would panic, effectively toppling Netanyahu. However, only David Magen broke with Likud. Though many of Gesher's members were described as the "lackeys" of David Levy by the press, Magen proved to be rather independent and later broke with Levy to join the Centre Party (then known as Israel in the Centre) in 1998.
Alliance with Likud
Gesher never reached the potential which Levy had predicted. Disadvantages for the populist party included the constant press attention to the Oslo Accords, terrorist attacks, rumors of negotiations surrounding the future of the Golan Heights, and the low priority that the media gave to economic and labor issues. Meanwhile, Netanyahu's campaign to topple Yitzhak Rabin helped revitalize Likud and bring in new members. Levy was forced to oppose Netanyahu's hard-line rhetoric, thereby appearing to be an ally of Rabin, though he continued to advocate his own proposals. Joining Rabin's Israeli Labor Party openly, even in coalition, was at that time still unacceptable to many Moroccans and other Mizrahim, who were resentful of Labor's predecessor, Mapai.
In the winter of 1995, Levy was beginning to break under the stress of his first election campaign outside Likud. Netanyahu had been frantically trying to moderate his image following the assassination of Rabin by a right-wing radical on 5 November 1995. Allying with Gesher would bring him closer to that goal without forcing him to take a clear stand in favor of the Oslo Accords. Netanyahu was also trying to recruit the hard-line Tzomet (Junction) party of Rafael Eitan on the right, as well as the moderate right-wing Yitzhak Mordechai in the center.
Throughout the spring, Netanyahu and Levy held negotiations, resulting in the Likud-Gesher-Tzomet, a three-party broad-based coalition which was strong enough to challenge the Labor Party in the May 1996 elections. Though the elections were a massive success for Netanyahu, they gained very little for Gesher. Mordechai became the second-most powerful person in Likud, and the right-wing character of the government was clear from the start. Levy demanded and received the Foreign Ministry, but was overshadowed by Netanyahu, who controlled almost every important foreign policy decision during his term. David Magen was given the post of Deputy Minister of Finance, under Yuval Ne'eman.
Netanyahu's term as prime minister became a stormy period for Levy and other coalition partners. The Bar-On Affair, an attempt to alter the investigation of Shas leader Aryeh Deri, created tension within the partners, as did Netanyahu's unclear policies on peace negotiations. The economic policies of Ne'eman hurt Likud's image with the working class, because unemployment increased while economic growth shrank, despite a fall in terror attacks and the adoption of a deregulation agenda.