Emergency unity government including opposition established in Israel

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has announced that a national emergency government with opposition party leader Benny Gantz was formed in the country.

"The people of Israel are united, and tonight their leadership is also united. We have put aside all the differences, since our country’s future hangs in the balance. We will be working together for all the Israelis, for the State of Israel," he said in a televised address to the nation.

The prime minister emphasized that the Israeli authorities’ present priority is to defeat the radical Palestinian organization HAMAS, which attacked the country on October 7.

Who is Benny Gantz?

Previosly, retired army general Benny Gantz served as the Israeli Minister of Defense in 2020-2022, as the alternate prime minister in 2020-2021 and deputy prime minister of Israel in 2021-2022. Gantz was also the Chief of the General Staff in 2011–2015 and the Speaker of the Knesset in 2020.