Israel: Netanyahu able to form govt, but hurdles remain

In Israel, Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu will attempt to swear in his governing coalition of far-right and ultra-Orthodox parties on Thursday. Speaker Yariv Levin on Monday told the Israeli Knesset (parliament) plenum that Prime Minister-designate Benjamin Netanyahu has succeeded in forming a government and a special plenum will be held next week to ratify the new government. Netanyahu last Wednesday informed President Isaac Herzog that he has been able to form the next government but the same could not be done at the Knesset because of Hanukkah holidays.

According to media reports, Netanyahu still has to overcome some key stumbling blocks before swearing in the government, including formalizing coalition agreements with almost all of his partners, dividing ministerial jobs among his Likud party members, and finalizing two key pieces of legislation demanded by coalition partners as preconditions. Apart from clearing the legislative hurdles, Netanyahu also has yet to finalize coalition agreements with his partners and to divvy out roles to his own party’s senior MKs before the swearing-in.