Explained: Who is Naftali Bennett, the new Prime Minister of Isreal

New Delhi, June 14: After being in power for 12 years, Benjamin Netanyahu had to make way for Naftali Bennett as Israel's new Prime Minister.

The new PM is a former aide of Netanyahu and is considered to be the right of the outgoing PM. As per the agreement by the coalition stitched to oust Netanyahu, Yair Lapid will replace Bennet as PM after two years if the government survives.

Bennett is born to American parents:

Bennett is a 49 year old politicians with American parents. He was a millionaire who later got deeply involved in right-wing politics and a religious nationalist political position.

He has been labelled as an ultra nationalist. He had told the Times of Isreal in February that he is more rightwing than Netanyahu, but I don't use hate or polarisation as a tool to promote himself politically.

Bennett has worked closely with Netanyahu:

Bennett had worked for Netanyahu as a senior aide between 206 and 2008. He left the Likud party after his relations with Netanyahu soured and joined the Yamin Party. He then aligned himself with the right wing national religious Jewish Home Party and entered Parliament as its representative in 2013.

Strong advocate of Jewish nation:

He is a strong advocate of a Jewish nation state and insists on Jewish historical and religious claims to the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Golan Heights territory near the Israel-Syria border that Israel has occupied since the 1967 war.

Hardliner towards Palestine militants

He has taken a hardline towards Palestinian militants and has endorsed death penalty for them. He accused the Hamas of murdering civilians in Gaza. He is not in the business of boycotting political rivals, but he is a man of the national camp a firm and proud right-winger who will oppose Palestinian statehood forever, under any and every circumstance; who wants to extend Israeli sovereignty to some 60 per cent of the West Bank; who thinks Israel has already relinquished too much of its Biblical land, the Times of Isreal had written.