Israel’s President Isaac Herzog asked Benjamin Netanyahu to form a new government on Sunday, allowing the former prime minister to secure the country’s top job for a record sixth time and extend his record as the nation’s longest-serving leader.
Netanyahu, who served 12 years as Prime Minister before losing office in 2021, was recommended by party leaders representing more than half of Israel’s 120 parliament or Knesset members after the president concluded a political consultation with them.
“Israel’s citizens require a stable and functioning government,” Herzog said in remarks after the closed-door meeting with Netanyahu.
“A government that serves all citizens of Israel, both those who supported and voted for it and those who opposed its establishment; a government that works on behalf of and for the sake of all shades of the Israeli mosaic, from all communities, sectors, faiths, religions, lifestyles, beliefs, and values, and that treats them all with sensitivity and responsibility.”
Israelis voted on November 1 for a fifth time in four years to break the political stalemate in the country.
Netanyahu’s Likud party has the most seats in the Knesset, and the former prime minister will have 28 days to form a coalition government, with the possibility of a two-week extension.
But Netanyahu isn’t in for an easy ride: he is now likely to lead an ever-polarized country and possibly one of the most right-wing governments in Israel’s history.
During negotiations, he will have to divide up ministries among his coalition partners and haggle over policies.
This is where things get interesting. The five factions allied with Netanyahu’s Likud have a four-seat majority in the 120-seat Knesset, or parliament, and failure to give any one of them what they want could provoke them to bring the coalition down. CNN
