Naftali Bennett pushes Binyamin Netanyahu out of power in Israel

ISRAEL HAS little in the form of ceremonies or protocols for the transition of power—and what little it has was largely forgotten, as the country has not seen a change of power in over 12 years. So minutes after its new government won a confidence vote on June 13th, the outgoing prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, had to be told by one of his colleagues that he needed to vacate the seat at the centre of the government’s bench. He has sat there for a total of 15 years, longer than any other Israeli prime minister.Naftali Bennett has become Israel’s 13th prime minister. The only sign of his new status was the phalanx of bodyguards who surrounded him as he left the floor of the Knesset (Israel’s parliament). Mr Bennett, 49, is an unlikely prime minister. A former aide to Mr Netanyahu, he is the leader of a nationalist party, Yamina, that is one of the smallest in the new coalition. He got the top job by positioning himself between the parties loyal to Mr Netanyahu and those opposed to him. After a close election in March, both sides needed him to form a government. Yair Lapid, the leader of the opposition, had to offer Mr Bennett the first two years of the new prime minister’s term in order to convince him to abandon Mr Netanyahu. (Mr Lapid will take over after two years, if the government lasts that long.)