Netanyahu Keeps Coalition as Hawkish Rival Gets Back in Line
- Bennett says his party won’t topple the Israeli government
- Elections still set for November 2019 after political drama
Benjamin Netanyahu at the Knesset on Nov. 19.
Photographer: Gali Tibbon/AFP via Getty Images
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu succeeded in keeping his tottering governing coalition together, as a hawkish rival who was denied the defense portfolio said he would give the government more time to toughen its approach against Hamas militants in Gaza.
Education Minister Naftali Bennett, who was widely expected to topple the government by pulling his eight-person Jewish Home party out of the coalition, instead said he will stay for now. Israel’s benchmark stock index extended its gains after the announcement and the shekel reversed earlier losses.