Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu held the first cabinet meeting of his new government early Friday morning.
The new right-wing coalition was sworn in late last night amid wrangling within his Likud party over cabinet posts. There was also a last minute problem as one member of the ruling Likud Party, and candidate for a cabinet post himself, took ill and was rushed to the hospital.
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Because Netanyahu has only a one seat majority government he needed every single member of his new coalition to be present and vote in favor of it in the Knesset. With this man absent he could not get the needed minimum 61 votes to form a new government.
If the vote was not held by last night it would have to have been delayed until Sunday because no business is conducted by the Knesset on either Friday or Saturday, Friday being the Muslim Sabbath and Saturday the Jewish One.
So it was a real nail biter in Jerusalem last night. And several senior Likud Party members are still fuming over not getting the cabinet appointments of their choosing.
Despite heckling by opposition lawmakers the new government was approved and inaugurated before midnight.
Netanyahu said the new government will continue to defend Israel.
The guidelines of the new government make no mention of a two state solution to the Israeli… [READ MORE]
