Naftali Bennett sworn in as Israel's new PM, ending Netanyahu's 12-year rule

Naftali Bennett was on Sunday sworn in as Israels new Prime Minister ending Benjamin Netanyahus 12year hold on power and the political uncertainty that gripped the Jewish nation for months after inconclusive electionsBennett the 49yearold leader of the rightwing Yamina party took oath of office after the Knesset Parliament elected him as the 13th Prime Minister of Israel by approved with a razorthin majority of 6059 in the 120member house One lawmaker abstainedHis government has 27 ministers nine of them womenThe new government an unprecedented coalition of ideologically divergent political parties drawn from the Right the Left and the Centre along with an Arab party has a razorthin majority in a 120member houseMickey Levy of Yesh Atid party was elected as the speaker of Parliament with the support of 67 lawmakersEarlier Bennett presented his new governments ministers in the Knesset Israeli parliament in a speech constantly interrupted by supporters of 71yearold NetanyahuAmid incessant heckling from rival blocrsquos lawmakers Bennett said that he is proud of the ability to sit with people of different opinionsAt the decisive moment we took responsibility he said The alternative to this government was more elections more hate which would have broken up the countryIt is time for responsible leaders from different parts of the nation to stop this madnessrdquo he assertedAgitated Likud ultraorthodox and ultranationalist lawmakers constantly jeered at Bennett during his speech calling him a criminal and a liarIn his speech Bennett also said that Israel will not allow Iran to arm itself with nuclear weaponsIsrael will not be a party to the agreement and will continue to preserve full freedom of actionrdquo he said opposing the US efforts to revive Irans nuclear dealUS President Joe Biden congratulated Prime Minister Bennett and said he is looking forward to working with himldquoOn behalf of the American people I congratulate Prime Minister Naftali Bennett Alternate Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Yair Lapid and all the members of the new Israeli cabinet I look forward to working with Prime Minister Bennett to strengthen all aspects of the close and enduring relationship between our two nationsrdquo Biden was quoted as saying by The Times of IsraelldquoIsrael has no better friend than the United States The bond that unites our people is evidence of our shared values and decades of close cooperation and as we continue to strengthen our partnership the United States remains unwavering in its support for Israelrsquos securityMy administration is fully committed to working with the new Israeli government to advance security stability and peace for Israelis Palestinians and people throughout the broader regionrdquo the US president saidBennett a former ally turned rival of Netanyahu is leading a fragile coalition of eight parties Yamina Yair Lapids Yesh Atid New Hope Labor Meretz United Arab List Kahol Lavan and Yisrael BeiteinuThe alliance contains parties that have vast ideological differences and perhaps most significantly includes the first independent Arab party to be part of a potential ruling coalition RaamBennett has entered into a powersharing agreement with Centrist leader Yair Lapid the head of the Yesh Atid party under which the latter would take over premiership in September 2023 serving for two years till the end of the termLapid the leader of the secondlargest faction in the Knesset with 17 seats was invited by President Reuven Rivlin to form a coalition after Netanyahu leading the Likud party with 30 seats expressed his inability to put together a government backed by a majority of the lawmakersThe unstable coalition that Lapid has managed to put together faces severe challenges and the glue that seems to hold them together is the unity of purpose created by the agenda of ousting NetanyahuThe approval of the new government by the Knesset ended 12 years of uninterrupted rule by Netanyahu who holds the record of being the longestserving Prime Minister in the countrys historyHaving served in the position earlier between 1996 and 1999 Netanyahu last year surpassed the record held by one of the Jewish states founding leaders David BenGurionIn his address to parliament Netanyahu vowed to bring down this dangerous governmentIf it is destined for us to be in the opposition we will do it with our backs straight until we topple this dangerous government and return to lead the country in our wayrdquo Netanyahu said as he made clear he has no plans on giving up leadership of the Likud PartyIran is celebrating the formation of a weak governmentrdquo in Israel Netanyahu saidFrom the moment the US returns to the nuclear deal with Iran the incoming government wonrsquot approve significant operations in Iran he saidA government that is not able to forcefully oppose the international community on the pressing issues for our fate is not worthy of leading Israel he said claiming that Bennett doesnrsquot have the credibility or the global standing to stop Iran from acquiring nuclear capabilityThe formation of the new government ended the political impasse in the country that saw four elections in less than two years leading to inconclusive resultsBut opinion polls suggest that majority of the Israelis do not look too hopeful regarding the longevity of the coalition of eight parties who do not see eyetoeye on most of the critical issues facing the countryMany analysts feel that the two factors likely to prolong or determine the tenure of the new fragile coalition are the fear of Netanyahus return and also a possible political demise of some of the rightwing factions that have gone against the wishes of their voting constituency to join handsIt also includes Bennetts Yamina party which has to score some major wins to restore the faith of its supporters in the movementInterestingly almost onethird of the people standing in unity to oust Netanyahu would otherwise be his natural allies ideologically having also worked as his close associates in the pastMany analysts believe that Netanyahus longterm invincibility led to arrogance because of which he went on pushing his friends away from him each time there were differences of opinion simultaneously also labelling them as Leftists as if it was a stigmaIt is still not all over for Netanyahu who has dominated Israels political landscape for years and would remain the head of the rightwing Likud party and become the leader of the oppositionThe coalition agreement involving eight factions with the 61 seats required for a majority was signed on June 2 just about half an hour before a deadline was due to expireNetanyahu is fighting corruption cases on fraud bribery and breach of trust charges which he denies If he were to go into the opposition he might be denied parliamentary immunityThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability 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