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Commotion erupts between lawmakers during Netanyahu’s Knesset speech

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks at the opening ceremony of the 26th Knesset in Jerusalem, Nov. 10, 2026. Photo by Chaim Goldberg/Flash90
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks at the opening ceremony of the 26th Knesset in Jerusalem, Nov. 10, 2026. Photo by Chaim Goldberg/Flash90

Tensions flared during Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech on Tuesday following the swearing-in ceremony for the 26th Knesset.

After Netanyahu called for a thorough investigation into suspicions that foreign actors had used large sums of money to influence the election results, Naftali Bennett, former prime minister and chairman of the B’Yachad party, fired back in Hebrew, “What about the Qatari advisers in your office? What about a state commission of inquiry?”

Netanyahu’s wife, Sara Netanyahu, also confronted Bennett during the speech, Israeli media reported. MK Gilad Kariv, of The Democrats, was removed from the hall after accusing Netanyahu of incitement. “Since the balcony in Zion Square, you haven’t stopped inciting,” Kariv shouted.

Earlier, during the swearing-in ceremony, National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir interrupted Joint List chairman Yousef Jabareen’s oath, shouting, “Who is he pledging allegiance to—Hamas?”

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