The agreement to co-govern the Yamina and Yesh Atid parties in Israel ended Netanyahu’s rule after 12 years, and gave the Middle East country a new prime minister.
But who is Naftali Bennett, the leader of the right-wing Yamina party?
Bennett has been a solid ally of former Prime Minister Netanyahu for years. Former commando, very close to lobbying circles in the United States thanks to his past.
He has been an extremely successful entrepreneur in the field of high technology. His computer security products enabled him to move to New York for several years, where he sold his company for $ 140 million.
Bennett has been an early supporter of the Jewish colonies in the occupied territory, as well as an equally strong opponent of the creation of a Palestinian state.
Former leader of the main pro-colonial movement, Yesha, Benett has made the annexation of the territory occupied in 1967 a key part of the political platform.
Bennett’s coalition with former journalist Yair Lapid looks strange, at first glance. Yamina addresses the most religious part of the electorate, while Yesh Atid addresses the middle class with a Western approach, but everything seems forgotten in view of the political compromise that has as its main objective the political elimination of Netanyahu.
The deal envisions running Bennett until 2023, and then a rotation where Yair Lapid will be prime minister.
