Israeli Cabinet Approves Appointment Of New Defense Minister

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu last week signed an agreement to assign the country’s Defense Minister role to the leader of the right-wing nationalist party.

Under the agreement signed on May 25, ‘Israel Our Home’ party leader Avigdor Lieberman will become defense minister.

The approval comes after a week-long conflict between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Minister Naftali Bennett, who threatened to veto Lieberman's appointment if his demands for reform of the security cabinet were not addressed.

In addition to the appointment of Lieberman, Sofa Landver (Yisrael Beiteinu) took the post of immigrant absorption minister and Tzachi Hanegbi (Likud) was appointed minister without portfolio in the Prime Minister's Office, Haaretz reported.

The ministerial appointments will go before the Knesset for final approval Monday afternoon.

The appointment of Yisrael Beiteinu ministers is part of Netanyahu's coalition expansion, which will bring the party into the government.

The prime minister was quoted as saying that the new expanded coalition — increased to 66 from 61 seats in the 120-seat Knesset — would improve political stability and help Israel “deal with the challenges in front of us, as well as the opportunities in front of us.”

President Reuven Rivlin expressed his support for the expansion of the coalition, calling the move to broaden the government "correct and justified".