Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was to undergo surgery on Sunday after his medical team discovered a hernia during a routine checkup over the weekend, the Prime Minister’s Office announced.
“In consultation with his doctors, it was decided that tonight, following the conclusion of the daily schedule (Sunday, 31.3), the prime minister will go to the hospital for hernia surgery,” the statement said.
The operation will be performed under full anesthesia, and Justice Minister Yariv Levin will serve as acting prime minister for the duration of the procedure.
The operation was scheduled for 9 p.m. at Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem’s Ein Kerem. Sunday’s statement did not elaborate on the nature of Netanyahu’s hernia.
On Dec. 31, following routine annual checkups by his medical team, Netanyahu received a clean bill of health after undergoing an emergency cardiac procedure earlier in the year.
“During the past year, [the prime minister] underwent annual routine examinations without any unusual findings,” said a letter signed by Netanyahu’s personal physician, Dr. Tzvi Berkovitz, and Prof. Alon Pikarsky, head of surgery at Jerusalem’s Hadassah Medical Center.
“The prime minister maintains a healthy lifestyle and a proper diet. The state of his health is completely normal,” added the physicians.
A separate note from Sheba Medical Center at Tel HaShomer in Ramat Gan touched upon the condition of Netanyahu’s heart, noting that the premier was outfitted with a cardiac pacemaker several months earlier.
“The pacemaker implanted in his body is working properly, the electrical indicators are within the norm, he is not dependent on the pacemaker, and no unusual incidents have been recorded,” wrote Professor Roy Beinart, director of Sheba’s Arrhythmia Institute.
“From a cardiac point of view, the prime minister is completely stable and does not need additional treatment besides routine monitoring,” said Beinart.