Yair Lapid became Israel’s interim prime minister at midnight today, after the Knesset voted Thursday to dissolve itself, triggering the country’s fifth election in just over three years. Lapid has replaced Naftali Bennett, who had announced he would not run in the next elections, as part of their power-sharing deal.
President Joe Biden congratulated Lapid on Twitter, saying he looked forward to seeing both Bennett and Lapid in Israel, and thanked Bennett for his “friendship over the past year.”
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken also offered his “warmest congratulations” to the new leader.
“Congratulations to Israel’s new Prime Minister Yair Lapid and thank you to outgoing Prime Minister Naftali Bennett for his leadership. The bond between the US and Israel has never been stronger and I look forward to working together on shared bilateral and regional goals,” he wrote on Twitter.
{Matzav.com Israel}
