President Reuven Rivlin presided on Tuesday over the swearing-in of the 24th Knesset, two weeks after Israel held its 4th election in two years.
Rivlin said it was imperative that despite the instability caused by the political crisis, lawmakers bridge their differences. "If we do not have the wisdom to find a template that would allow us to coexist here, with mutual respect for one another and a sense of commitment to the welfare of everyone, our national resilience may be in real jeopardy," he warned.
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He added that without finding a way to create a functioning government, voters would no longer hold them in high regard, just hours after he announced that he was tapping Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with forming a new government even though no side had won a clear-cut majority in the March 23 election.
"Israelis are looking up to you and expect you to exhibit leadership, and this is not just an expectation from the person tasked with forming a government or the new president you appoint [after Rivlin's term expires in July], but from each and every one of you, as the representatives of the public," he said, and concluded: "I believe in this nation, I believe in it because this is what history has taught me to believe. I believe it because we have shown our strength during the pandemic. You should believe so as well."
After every MK was sworn in, the chamber began singing the national anthem. At this point, some of the MKs in the joint Arab list walked out in protest. Some of them had also refused to take the oath of office, potentially voiding their seats.
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