Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
ABIR SULTAN | AFP | Getty Images
The Israeli parliament, the Knesset, approved its new government – and for the first time in 12 years a new prime minister – with a wafer-thin 60:59 votes on Sunday.
The vote that ushered in the leadership of a very diverse and cobbled together coalition of right, left, centrist and Islamist parties ousted Israel’s longest-serving leader, Benjamin Netanyahu. It also saves Israel the prospect of a fifth election in less than two years.
Now, after fighting back and trying several policy options to stay in power, Netanyahu will step aside and Israeli tech millionaire and lawmaker Naftali Bennett, whom many consider more right-wing predecessor, to take over as prime minister.
Sunday’s Knesset vote was shrouded in chaos and derision as some right-wing lawmakers, including those of Netanyahu’s Likud party, insulted Bennett, calling him a “traitor” and “liar” for the alliance with left and Arab parties. At least four politicians were kicked out of the meeting by spokesman Yariv Levin.
Bennett, a former Netanyahu adviser, continued his pre-vote speech amid the heckling heckling, praising Netanyahu as “working hard and faithfully for the State of Israel”. But he also pushed for the need for new leadership.
“We stopped the train at the edge,” said Mr. Bennett. “It is time for various leaders from all parts of the people to stop trying to stop this madness.”
In a statement, US President Joe Biden congratulated Bennett and other leaders of the new administration and cabinet.
“I look forward to working with Prime Minister Bennett to strengthen all aspects of the close and lasting relationship between our two nations. Israel has no better friend than the United States working closely together, and as we continue to strengthen our partnership, the United States remains steadfast in its support for Israel’s security. “
‘We’ll be back soon’
The 71-year-old right-wing leader is a lightning rod in its twelfth year and has long been a dividing line in Israeli society. An Israeli expert told CNBC that the country’s last elections in March – the fourth in less than two years due to the complex and polarized nature of Israeli politics – really came down to whether the country wanted “Bibi or no Bibi”. where the outgoing Prime was used became the minister’s popular nickname.
Speaking to the Knesset in English, Netanyahu said: “We’ll be back soon.”
“If we have to be in the opposition, we will keep this up – until we overthrow this dangerous government and return to run the state,” he said in a defiant address, saying he spoke for millions of Israelis who are for him have voted.
A combination of file photos shows Israeli Education Minister Naftali Bennett giving a speech in Jerusalem on May 14, 2018, and Yesh Atid Party leader Yair Lapid giving a speech in Tel Aviv, Israel, on March 24, 2021.
Ammar Awad; Amir Cohen | Reuters
He also slammed a bill proposed by the new government that would limit a prime minister’s term to eight years, four years less than his term in office.
Netanyahu himself faces several allegations of corruption, which he denies. He had been looking for ways to avoid prosecution, which would have been a lot easier if he had stayed in power. Meanwhile, he can still remain the leader of the Likud party.
The outgoing prime minister attracted international criticism and attention for his persistent military action against Gaza in May, in which Israeli air strikes killed more than 250 Palestinians, including 66 children, in response to rocket volleys by Hamas that killed Israel during course 12 of the fighting .
Future challenges
The new coalition that is now taking power is led by centrist lawmaker Yair Lapid, a former television presenter and former finance minister and head of the Yesh Atid party, and his unlikely government partner, Naftali Bennett, who leads the minority Yamina party.
It is very unusual for a minority party leader to become prime minister, but that was what it took Bennett to join Lapid’s coalition – and his alliance with Lapid was the only way the coalition could get enough Knesset seats to hold one To have majority.
So the deal for Lapid and Bennett is based on the agreement that Bennett will become Prime Minister by 2023, with centrist Lapid as Secretary of State. At this point, if the party alliance survives, Lapid will assume the office of prime minister.
It is also the first time in Israeli history that its government includes an Arab party that aims to represent the country’s 21% Arab minority.
The government is expected to focus on social and economic issues that foster consensus among its disparate members rather than divisive ones such as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and Palestinian statehood.
But there are serious challenges ahead. The fragile coalition between Lapid and Bennett and the parties whose support they had to win to achieve the magic number of a majority of 61 seats in the Knesset is a risk to itself, analysts say. The only thing that seems to hold them together is a shared desire to take Netanyahu off the bench. But because of the incredibly narrow majority of 61 seats in the 120-member parliament, it would only take one move for the government to collapse.
And in view of the sometimes extreme differences of opinion between the parties, especially between right-wing and Islamist politicians in Israel, this danger of standstill and collapse remains a constant threat.
