Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu during a speech in Jerusalem July 5, 2023. JACK GUEZ/AFP
Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu will undergo emergency surgery to insert a pacemaker, his office said in a statement early Sunday, July 23, just days after he was discharged from hospital with an illness.
“Prime Minister Netanyahu will undergo a pacemaker implantation tonight at Sheba Medical Center in Tel Hashomer,” the statement said. “The procedure will take place under sedation and Justice Minister and Deputy Prime Minister Yariv Levin will represent him during this time,” the document said.
In a brief video statement released at midnight, the Prime Minister revealed he had been fitted with a surveillance device after a brief hospital stay last week. He said the device went off an alarm on Saturday night, meaning he needed a pacemaker immediately. “I feel great, but I listen to my doctors,” he said.
continuation of judicial reform
But he vowed to go ahead with his controversial plan to reform the judicial system, as tens of thousands of Israelis took to the streets on Saturday to reiterate their opposition to the text, which was meant to limit the Supreme Court’s powers.
The prime minister said he intended to leave the hospital on Sunday and go to the Knesset (Israel’s parliament) ahead of the expected vote on the reform. He was hoping for an agreement with his opponents, he said.
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A week ago, Mr Netanyahu, 73, left the same medical center after a night in hospital due to dizziness. A pacemaker is used when a patient’s heart is beating too slowly, which can lead to fainting. It can also be used to treat heart failure. By sending electrical impulses to the heart, the device increases or maintains a person’s heart rate at a normal level, which allows the heart to pump blood around the body at a normal rate.
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