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Benjamin Netanyahu’s 12-year run as Israel’s prime minister ended on Sunday with parliament approving a new “government of change” led by nationalist Naftali Bennett.
Heading into opposition, Netanyahu, 71, the most dominant Israeli politician of his generation, pledged he would soon return to power.
In a raucous session in which Netanyahu’s right-wing and ultra-Orthodox supporters shouted “shame” and “liar” at Bennett, parliament voted confidence in his new administration by a razor-thin 60-59 majority.
A former defence minister and a high-tech millionaire, Bennett, 49, was due to be sworn in shortly after the vote.
Israel’s longest-serving leader, Netanyahu was prime minister since 2009, after a first term from 1996 to 1999. But he was weakened by his repeated failure to clinch victory in the polls since 2019 and by an ongoing corruption trial, in which he has denied any wrongdoing.
Under a coalition deal, Bennett will be replaced as prime minister by centrist Yair Lapid, 57, in 2023.
Palestinians were unmoved by the change of administration, predicting that Bennett would pursue the same right-wing agenda as Netanyahu.
Under a coalition deal, Bennett will be replaced as prime minister by centrist Yair Lapid, 57, in 2023.