New government to be sworn in after lengthy talks

Text by: Guilhem Delteil Follow

This should be the end of more than a year of political crisis in Israel which has led to the organization of three successive parliamentary elections. A new government is expected to be presented to Parliament on Thursday and receive the confidence of a majority of MPs. The Knesset session is scheduled for the evening and the vote will be taken around 10 p.m. local time. A government of national unity that has been complicated to establish.

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From our correspondent in Jerusalem,

The outlines of this new government had been known since April 20, the date of the signing of a coalition agreement between Likoud and Bleu-Blanc. The executive will now have two heads, two so-called alternating prime ministers, who will govern 18 months each. And the team will be the largest in the history of the country: 32 ministries at first, divided equally between the two camps.

But for more than three weeks, negotiations have continued well. Bleu-Blanc offered two ministries, the Economy and Social Affairs, to the Labor party. And its leader, Benny Gantz, had to decide between the candidates for the other portfolios: Defense for him, Foreign Affairs for his number two Gabi Ashkenazi, Justice and Education for other executives of his training.

But it was within the right bloc that the discussions were the most bitter. He, who had hitherto governed alone, therefore saw his number of ministries fall. And the dissatisfied are numerous. Benyamin Netanyahu has retained the support of the two ultra-Orthodox groups, but Yamina, the coalition of the religious nationalist right, considers himself wronged and this ally of Netanyahu in recent years will finally enter the opposition.

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• Israel
• Benyamin netanyahu

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