Benyamin Netanyahu appointed to form a new government in Israel

ISRAEL. Despite his previous failures and a corruption trial that has just begun, Benyamin Netanyahu (71) was appointed on Tuesday, April 6, 2021, by Israeli President Reuven Rivlin to form the next government. "I know the position of many, that the president should not give the role to a candidate who faces criminal charges, but according to the law and the decision of the courts, a prime minister can continue in his role even if he faces charges (...) It was not an easy decision for me both morally and ethically (...) the State of Israel should not be taken for granted. And I fear for my country. He said on Twitter.

The outgoing Prime Minister won the parliamentary elections of March 23, 2021. While it was the fourth in less than two years, no formation was able to obtain enough votes to govern alone. "I made my decision on the basis of the recommendations (of the 13 parties present in the Knesset, the Israeli parliament) which indicate that MP Benyamin Netanyahu has a greater possibility of forming a government," said Reuven Rivlin. Fifty-two deputies supported Benyamin Netanyahu to the president against forty-five in favor of Yair Lapid and his centrist party Yesh Atid (17 elected).

 

The Likud now has thirty elected officials out of the 120 in parliament. To reach a majority and be able to govern, it needs the support of at least sixty-one MPs. Benyamin Netanyahu will seek them from the ultra-Orthodox parties and the Religious Zionist Party (far right), which would bring about thirty elected officials. "I will do everything in my power to get Israel out of the election cycle. We will form a strong government, not a government of paralysis, but of action (...) I consider myself as the Prime Minister of all," he declared on Tuesday, April 6, 2021.

At the helm since 2009, the Prime Minister-designate now has twenty-eight days to successfully form his team. Otherwise, the Israelis will have to go to the polls again.