Israeli President Isaac Herzog was caught saying that “the whole world is worried” about newly elected lawmaker Itamar Ben-Gvir’s far-right positions, local media reported. Herzog was holding a consultation with the ultra-Orthodox Shas party about last week’s election when his comment about Ben-Gvir, an ultra-nationalist set to become a minister in Benjamin Netanyahu’s new cabinet, was picked up by a microphone he apparently thought that it was disabled. “You have a partner that the whole world around us is worried about. I’ve told him that too,” Herzog was heard saying at the end of the meeting on Wednesday. “You’re going to have trouble with the Temple Mount. This is a critical issue,” Herzog said, referring to the Al-Aqsa mosque compound, which far-right Israelis have repeatedly entered in recent years, violating long-agreed access rules. Herzog’s office later reiterated that the president had discussed those concerns directly with Ben-Gvir. Ben-Gvir, who leads the far-right Jewish Power party, is expected to be in former Prime Minister Netanyahu’s new government after winning last week’s election. He is best known as a far-right provocateur who hates the Palestinians. In 2007, he was convicted of inciting racism, destroying property, possessing propaganda material of a “terrorist” organization and supporting a “terrorist” organization – Meir Kahane’s illegal Kach group, which he joined when he was 16. He recently expressed interest in becoming police minister, raising alarm among Palestinians about a possible increase in violence. Netanyahu’s new government is likely to be one of the most right-wing in Israel’s history. Local media reported that Ben-Gvir said he had “many constructive talks” with the president and that he intends to explain the positions of his Jewish Power party. The president’s consultations with the political parties will continue in the coming days. He will use a candidate to form a government on Sunday, his office said. Last week’s election was the fifth in less than four years. Along with smaller far-right and religious parties, the Likud party received 64 seats in the 120-seat parliament, giving Netanyahu a solid majority and easing the process of forming a government.
