Netanyahu announces the formation of a new Israeli government

In Israel, former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that he had formed a new government. This appears to pave the way for him to return to leading the government, leading the most right-wing government ever seen in Israel. The new coalition includes a far-right party and two ultra-Orthodox parties.

The 73-year-old Likud party leader made the announcement during a phone conversation with President Isaac Herzog. A short video was posted on Twitter with a fragment of this conversation. Netanyahu added that he was able to form a government “thanks to the huge support we received in the last election.”

Netanyahu says he intends to complete the training process “as soon as possible next week.” He did not give a specific date for the swearing-in.

In early November, the Likud party became big winner from the legislative elections. So it looks like Netanyahu, suspected of corruption, will return as prime minister. He has already fulfilled this role from 1996 to 1999 and between 2009 and 2021.

If the coalition gets enough support, Netanyahu will have a tough job ahead. His coalition partners are pushing for sweeping course changes that could lead to major polarization in the country. Palestinians in the West Bank fear that the new government will further tighten its grip on Palestinian territories and dramatically expand Jewish settlement construction.

The parties in the planned coalition also want to overhaul the rule of law and implement legislative changes that will, among other things, result in the dropping of the case against Netanyahu for fraud and corruption.