After losing the 2021 Israeli general election, Benjamin "Bibi" Netanyahu had a message for all those revelling in his political demise. "We'll be back!" he said defiantly, as he relinquished Israel's premiership in June last year after 12 years as the country's leader. It sounded like both a promise and a threat.
Whatever it was, it has taken him just 17 months to be proved right. After last Tuesday's election, Netanyahu is truly back. His
Likud party is the biggest single political force in the country. Together with right-wing allies, some of them on the far right, Netanyahu has enough seats to secure a majority in the Knesset (Israel's parliament) and once again become the country's prime minister, a job he first secured in 1996.
Then, he was Israel's youngest-ever prime minister. Born in 1949, he was also the first prime minister of Israel to have been born after the state was formed a year earlier. In the next few days, the now 73-year-old will once again be crowned the country's leader.
It will be his third stint as Israeli PM, having also held the post between 2009 and June 2021, a 12-year stretch that also helped Netanyahu to make history as the country's longest-standing leader. That distinction is now set to be extended, as is his domination of Israeli politics. Netanyahu has won a record five elections to hold office six times more than any other prime minister in Israel's 74-year history.
This story is from the November 06, 2022 edition of The Independent.
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This story is from the November 06, 2022 edition of The Independent.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
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