He also passed legislation putting a firebrand West Bank settler in charge of settlement policy, including the power to appoint a top general responsible for policies toward the Palestinians. Netanyahu has placed a far-right provocateur who was once convicted of incitement and supporting a Jewish terrorist group in charge of the nation’s police force. But a pair of appointments have raised questions about that relationship. Netanyahu has historically worked well with his security chiefs. The military, along with Israel’s police and myriad security agencies, command influence and respect in Israeli society. Gaza’s Hamas rulers have already warned of an “open confrontation” next year. And if Netanyahu’s allies test the tense status quo in east Jerusalem - home to the city’s most important and sensitive holy site - violence could spread across Israel and into the Gaza Strip, as it did in 2021. Fighting in the West Bank, already at its highest levels in years, could escalate. But that sense of resignation could turn to anger if the new government steps up settlement activities or annexes the West Bank, the heartland of their hoped-for state. With peace talks already on hold for over a decade, some don't see how any government can make things worse. Many Palestinians have greeted the election of the new government with a shrug. Given American Jews' predominantly liberal political views, these misgivings could have a ripple effect in Washington and further widen a partisan divide over support for Israel. Leaders of the American Jewish community have also expressed concern over the incoming government and members' hostility toward the liberal streams of Judaism popular in the U.S. But if his coalition moves forward, there could be a crisis in relations with Israel’s closest ally. Netanyahu has vowed to protect minority rights. It also considers steps that marginalize the Palestinians, LGBTQ people and other minority groups as detrimental. opposes settlements as obstacles to peace. It wants to legalize dozens of wildcat outposts and says that it plans to annex the occupied territory at an unspecified time. A day before taking office, Netanyahu’s government said West Bank settlement expansion would be a top priority. The Biden administration has expressed unease over the more extreme politicians in the new government, but said it will judge it by policies, not personalities. Here is a closer look at some of the challenges awaiting the new government: His ultranationalist partners will also have great leverage over him because they have promised to promote legislation that could dismiss criminal charges against him. Netanyahu has sought to play down concerns, saying that he will set policy - little comfort for his many critics who have bristled at his hard-line policies toward the Palestinians. Even members of Netanyahu's Likud Party are grumbling. government and the American Jewish community. If these plans are carried out, they will alienate large portions of the Israeli public, raise the chances of conflict with the Palestinians, upset Israel’s powerful security establishment and put Israel on a collision course with some of its closest allies, including the U.S. Among them: newly created Cabinet positions with widespread authority over security and a law allowing a politician on probation for a criminal conviction to be a government minister.Īlong the way, he was forced to make generous concessions to allies that include commitments to expanding West Bank settlements, proposals to allow discrimination against against LGBTQ people and boosting subsidies for ultra-Orthodox men to study instead of work. Putting together his coalition proved to be surprisingly complicated, requiring nearly two months of painstaking negotiations and a series of legal maneuvers just to allow his partners to take office. JERUSALEM (AP) - After five elections that have paralyzed Israeli politics for nearly four years, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has finally returned to power with the government he has long coveted: a parliamentary majority of religious and far-right lawmakers who share his hard-line views toward the Palestinians and hostility toward Israel’s legal system.
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