The new coalition, which gives pride of place to Jewish supremacists and ultraorthodox, plans to weaken the judiciary and to extend colonization
by Clothilde Mraffko (Jerusalem, Correspondence)
Israel has a government. He is “stable” and “will go to the end of his mandate”, promised Benyamin Netanyahu who presented him Thursday morning December 29 at the Knesset, the Israeli Parliament. The deputies had to vote for confidence in the process – a formality with regard to the majority of the seats he holds. At 73, the Prime Minister, winner of the legislative elections of the 1 November, returns to the front of the political scene, after several failures, at the head of the most right coalition of the ‘History of the country.
He opens the doors of power to extremists: Likoud, the conservative party of M. Netanyahu, is almost centrist there in the midst of his Jewish and ultraorthodox supremacist allies. Unsurprisingly, Itamar Ben Gvir, convicted of incitement to hatred and support for a terrorist organization, becomes Minister of Public Security, with extensive control over the police. Bezalel Smotrich, religious ultra -nationalist, inherits finances for a time and will govern the Israeli colonies in the occupied territories.
The head of government has only announced the appointments within his own party only at the very last minute, with some key ministries, including justice and defense, attributed respectively to Yariv Levin, outgoing president of Knesset , and at Yoav Galant, a loved one, ex-commander of the South region. Some lieutenants stayed at the door.
m. Netanyahu who hopes to escape his indictments for corruption thanks to unavailable coalition partners on the rule of law, has given a lot to his new allies. And as in 2021, when he had been chased from power, he refused a ceremony to transfer power and was content to meet Yaïr Lapid, who had taken the lead in the interim government in June, for a working meeting.
Modeled for more than a decade by him, so that no serious competitor can emerge from his own ranks, the Likoud seems to be put aside. The new coalition far exceeds it by the right, and dissident voices, within the party, have already been raised. Civil society demonstrations were also scheduled for Thursday morning, notably before the Knesset.
Thus constituted, the 37
é> government of Israel – the sixth led by Mr. Netanyahu – should turn the page on political instability in Israel, after five elections in four years and two coalitions – The last, the most resistant, lasted just over a year. He mainly inaugurates a weakening of pillar institutions in the country – the very ones which allowed the maintenance of a functional state when the Knesset could not find a coalition.
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