Agreement on New Israeli Government

Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu finalized a deal to bring the hardline Yisrael Beytenu party into his coalition, giving him a larger 66 seat majority out of 120 Knesset members. The deal also makes Yisrael Beytenu leader Avigdor Lieberman, who immigrated from Moldova and has little military experience, the defense ministry. Negotiations were expected to have been completely last week but got snagged on Lieberman’s demands for pensions for elderly immigrants from the former Soviet Union. After late night negotiations, Lieberman announced that the government will allocate more than $350 million over four years for pension reform. He is expected to be sworn in as defense minister next week, after his appointment is approved by the Knesset. Israel’s former Defense Minister Moshe Ya’alon stepped down earlier this week after he was pushed out of his job to make room for Lieberman. Palestinians have slammed the expected new government, saying Lieberman is a “settler” who will advance a hardline agenda.