Im Tirtzu Founder Representing Yisrael Beiteinu in Zionist Elections

Ronen Shoval, co-founder of the right-wing Im Tirtzu movement, will be the candidate of Foreign Minister Avigdor Liberman’s Yisrael Beitenu party in the forthcoming World Zionist Congress elections, according to the NRG-Maariv website.

Shoval joined Yisrael Beitenu recently, after stepping down as chairman of Im Tirtzu, and has been appointed CEO of the party's international branch.

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The move has been described by political observers as an attempt by Lieberman to revitalize the party's ranks and bolster its appeal to a wider audience than it's ex-Russian base, NRG-Maariv wrote.

In an interview earlier this month, Shoval said his aim was to “rejuvenate” the party and the global Zionist institutions.

Im Tirzu describes its goals as being "to strengthen Zionist values in academia and in society as a whole while providing a home for students who know and truly understand that Zionism is their heritage and their birthright."

In February, a Jerusalem court threw out the group's claim for damages against a left-wing activist who described it as "fascist" on Facebook. While ruling that the description was indeed libelous, the judge ruled that the group was not entitled to damages.