Benjamin Netanyahu has been voted out after his 12-year run as Israel’s prime minister ended on Sunday with parliament approving a new “government led by nationalist Naftali Bennett.
In a raucous session in which Netanyahu’s right-wing and ultra-Orthodox supporters shouted “shame” and “liar” at Bennett, parliament voted confidence in his new administration by a razor-thin 60-59 majority.
A former defence minister and a high-tech millionaire, Bennett, 49, was sworn in shortly after the vote.
Israel’s longest-serving leader, Netanyahu was prime minister since 2009, after a first term from 1996 to 1999. But he was weakened by his repeated failure to clinch victory in the polls since 2019 and by an ongoing corruption trial, in which he has denied any wrongdoing.
The new government, formed after an inconclusive March 23 election, plans largely to avoid sweeping moves on hot-button international issues such as policy toward the Palestinians and to focus on domestic reforms.
Palestinians were unmoved by the change of administration, predicting that Bennett would pursue the same right-wing agenda as Netanyahu.
Under a coalition deal, Bennett will be replaced as prime minister by centrist Yair Lapid, 57, in 2023.
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