This comes as opposition to his government’s controversial plan for judicial reform has reached its peak, and unrest has flared up in the country.
What happened to Netanyahu Sunday?
Netanyahu’s doctors said Sunday that the pacemaker implantation “went smoothly” and that the 73-year-old prime minister was “feeling fine,” the Associated Press reported. In a brief video statement issued at 2 a.m., Netanyahu explained that he was fitted with a tracking device after being hospitalized briefly last week, with what his office described as dehydration. The Israeli Prime Minister confirmed that “an alarm bell in the device beeped on Saturday night,” indicating that he needed a pacemaker immediately. However, Netanyahu said, “I feel fine, but I listen to my doctors.” The Israeli Prime Minister’s Office made it clear that he “will undergo surgery to implant a pacemaker in the Israeli Sheba Hospital,” where he was also treated last week. Netanyahu was sedated during the operation, and his chief deputy, Justice Minister Yariv Levin, took over on his behalf while he underwent surgery, according to Netanyahu’s office.
It is noteworthy that Levin, who is close to the Prime Minister, is the mastermind of the judicial reform process.
According to his office, Netanyahu is expected to leave the hospital later Sunday, to head to the Knesset before an expected vote on his proposal to overhaul the judicial system.
Netanyahu’s health troubles reportedly affected his daily schedule, as the weekly cabinet meeting scheduled for Sunday morning was postponed. Israel’s Army Radio reported that the security assessment of the legal dispute’s impact on the military was also removed from Netanyahu’s schedule.
Continuing protests
These events come in light of escalating tensions in Israel, with the start of a lengthy debate over the first major part of the judicial reform, before a vote in the Knesset (Parliament) to convert it into law, on Monday. Hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets across Israel Saturday night, while thousands marched to Jerusalem and camped near the Knesset ahead of the highly anticipated vote, which is expected to pass a key part of the sweeping reform. Despite the massive public protests, Netanyahu and his far-right allies say that “judicial reform is necessary to curb the excessive powers of unelected judges.”
But their critics say the plan would destroy the country’s system of checks and balances, setting it on a path to authoritarian rule.
2023-07-23 10:40:26
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