Israel’s parliament has been sworn in by Benjamin Netanyahu as prime minister, inaugurating the country’s most right-wing and ultra-Orthodox government in history.
Netanyahu, 73, was sworn in on Thursday, moments after Israel’s parliament, or Knesset, passed a vote of confidence in his new government. Of the 120 members of parliament, 63 voted in favor of the new government, compared to 54 against it.
The swearing-in marks a personal return to power and the arrival of a government that has sparked fears among Palestinians as well as left-wing Israelis.
The formation of this government is very different from any other government before. Al Jazeera’s Sarah Khairat said outside parliament in West Jerusalem, where left-wing Israelis gathered to protest.
But Khairat added that Netanyahu remains focused on sending an internal message to the Israelis.
“he is [Netanyahu] Promises that he will lower prices and help Israelis who are in hard times economically.”
far-right government
Netanyahu, who was prime minister between 1996 and 1999, then between 2009 and 2021, addressed a session of Israel’s parliament, or Knesset, before the vote.
Netanyahu and his coalition partners enjoy a majority in the Knesset. He was heckled during his speech to the Knesset, with opponents chanting that he was “weak”.
He said ending the “Arab-Israeli conflict” would be his top priority, as would halting Iran’s nuclear program and building Israel’s military capabilities.
Netanyahu’s victory in the Nov. 1 parliamentary election was expected to end years of political turmoil in Israel, where governments have repeatedly backtracked and elections have been held five times in less than four years.
Much of that was the result of staunch political opposition to Netanyahu himself, who is on trial for corruption, an allegation he denies.
However, it took weeks of strife and the introduction of new legislation to satisfy his far-right and nationalist coalition partners, as well as his own Likud party.
The result was a coalition that explicitly named settlement expansion in the occupied West Bank, illegal under international law, as its top priority.
This reflects the positions of far-right leaders who have attained high office, such as religious Zionist leader Bezalel Smotrich, and Jewish power leader Itamar Ben Gvir, who previously expressed support for Baruch Goldstein, an Israeli Jew who killed 29 Palestinians in a shooting at the Ibrahimi Mosque in Hebron in 1994.
Left-wing MK Ofer Kasif told Al Jazeera from a protest outside parliament that Israel was heading in a “very dangerous direction,” adding that the arrival of the new government would position Israel as a “total fascist state.”
Kasif added: “The international community must realize this and act on the basis of it.”
The formation of the new government is likely to inflame relations with the millions of Palestinians living under Israeli occupation.
Palestinians have already faced their deadliest year since 2006, according to the United Nations, after the outgoing Israeli government launched an offensive in Gaza in August, in addition to near-daily raids in the West Bank that led to dozens of deaths and arrests.
Liberal Israelis have also expressed reservations about the new government, particularly towards its positions on LGBT rights, key positions held by ultra-conservative religious figures.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog, who holds a largely ceremonial post, has himself warned of the potential damage a new Israeli government could do, and has previously been caught on a heated mic saying that “the whole world” was worried about figures like Ben-Gvir entering into the government.
bid confirmations
Netanyahu sought to back away from some of those concerns.
“We will establish a stable government for a full term that takes care of all the citizens of Israel,” he said on Wednesday, after his supporters in the Knesset pushed the legislation that paved the way for his government’s takeover.
One of the laws, which allows a minister serving a suspended sentence, to take office was designed specifically to allow the head of the hardline Shas party, Aryeh Deri, to become a minister.
However, much of the focus and fear from critics of the new government—both Israelis and Palestinians—was placed on Smotrich and Ben Gvir.
They form part of the broader religious Zionist ideological movement in Israel. Separate men’s parties ran on a joint list in the November elections to ensure they passed the electoral threshold before splitting again.
Smotrich and Ben Gvir, both of whom live in illegal settlements in the West Bank, will hold senior positions in the new government — Smotrich will be finance minister and also have authority over the settlements, while Ben Gvir, who was convicted in 2007 of the crimes, will hold the position. “Incitement against the Arabs” Having called for the expulsion of the Palestinians in Israel, he will become Minister of National Security with increased power over the police, including in the occupied territories.
The Palestinians now fear that this means what they see as harsher policies towards them, and they also fear the status quo of Al-Aqsa Mosque in occupied East Jerusalem.
Speaking on Wednesday, Jordan’s King Abdullah warned Israel not to cross any “red lines” in Jerusalem.
“If people want to come into conflict with us, we are fully prepared,” he said in an interview with CNN.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas said on Saturday that the slogan of the new Israeli government is “extremism and apartheid.”
However, Benny Gantz, Israel’s outgoing defense minister, told Abbas in a phone call on Wednesday that it was “critical to maintain an open channel of communication and coordination” between the Palestinian Authority and the Israeli government.
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