The new Israeli government, which was sworn in on Sunday, consists of a mixture of political parties that have little in common, except the desire to oust right-wing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The coalition runs from the far left to the far right, and the government is expected to focus mostly on economic and social issues rather than risk exposing internal divisions, in an effort to address key political issues.
These are the most prominent figures who will lead this government:
Prime Minister Naftali Bennett
Bennett leads the ultra-nationalist Yamina (Right) party that supports settlements in the occupied West Bank, and made a fortune in the high-tech field in Israel, before entering politics in 2013.
Bennett,
Foreign Minister Yair Lapid
Lapid heads the center-left party There is a Future, and was the main planner of the new government, and although his party is the largest in the coalition, he agreed to share power with Bennett to secure a parliamentary majority, and would serve as foreign minister for two years, then head the government until the end of its term.
He quit his job as a TV presenter in 2012 and formed his own party, fulfilling his promise to ease financial pressures on the middle class. It also seeks to end many government-funded privileges for ultra-Orthodox Jews, a long-standing complaint of many secular Israelis.
Defense Minister Benny Gantz
Only two years ago, Gantz, a former military commander who heads the centrist Blue and White party, represented the opposition’s best hope of ousting Netanyahu, agreed to join Netanyahu in a “national unity” government, a decision that angered many of his supporters.
Finance Minister Avigdor Lieberman
A far-right immigrant from Moldova who lives in an Israeli settlement in the occupied West Bank, he has been a prominent political figure for the past ten years. He joined Netanyahu’s governments, and among his positions was that of defense minister, but he also resigned.
As finance minister, he will have to rein in the budget deficit that has ballooned during the coronavirus pandemic, and he further said he will try to change the status quo between the government and Israel’s politically powerful ultra-religious minority, which is the mainstay of the outgoing Netanyahu government.
Justice Minister Gideon Sa’ar
Sa’ar was Netanyahu’s main rival in the Likud party, but the latter did his best to keep him out of the limelight and out of sensitive positions. Frustrated, Sa’ar launched a failed bid for leadership and then split from the party.
As head of the New Hope party, Sa’ar will serve as Minister of Justice, where he will oversee the legal system and become a member of the security cabinet.
Mansour Abbas
Abbas’s small United Arab List will be the first of the Arab parties within the Green Line to participate in an Israeli government.
Abbas is expected to serve as deputy minister in the prime minister’s office, and aims to negotiate a significant increase in government spending for Arab towns and villages.