Naftali Bennett

Naftali Bennett (Hebrew: נַפְתָּלִי בֶּנֶט; born 25 March 1972) is an Israeli politician who served as the 13th prime minister of Israel from 13 June 2021 to 30 June 2022. He led the Jewish Home party from 2012 to 2018, when he left the party to establish the New Right party. He served as Israel's Minister of Education from 2015 to 2019, and as the Minister of Diaspora Affairs from 2013 to 2019. Between 2013 and 2015, he held the posts of Minister of Economy and Minister of Religious Services.

Naftali Bennett in 2021

Quotes

• I will do everything in my power to prevent a Palestinian state
  • (2012)

• I've killed lots of Arabs in my life - and there's no problem with that.
  • (2013)

• The most important thing in the Land of Israel is to build, build, build. Its important that there will be an Israeli presence everywhere. Our principal problem is still Israels leaders unwillingness to say in a simple manner that the Land of Israel belongs to the People of Israel.
  • [1]

• The land is ours. I will do everything in my power, forever, to fight against a Palestinian state being founded in the Land of Israel
  • (January 2013)

• We will never agree to give up Jerusalem, a united city under Israeli sovereignty, and only Israeli. We will not accept a terrorist Palestinian state, we will not accept an agreement based on the 67 lines.
  • (2014)

• Trump's victory is an opportunity for Israel to immediately retract the notion of a Palestinian state.
  • (2016)

• The era of a Palestinian state is over.
  • (2016)

• If there's one thing that keeps me up at night, it's not Iran but the future of the Jews in America, and we have to fix this together. If we don't act urgently, we're going to be losing millions of Jews to assimilation.
  • Speech at American Jewish Committee conference in Jerusalem "Future of U.S. Jews 'Keeps Me Up at Night,' Israeli Minister Tells Jewish Gathering", Haaretz (12 June 2018).

• [the country continues to] stand at the forefront of the global effort to deal with the pandemic
  • [Israel begins fourth Covid-19 dose vaccine rollout for people 60 and over as Omicron cases surge] (December 21, 2021)

• The world order as we know it is changing. The world is much less stable, and our region too is changing every day. These are difficult, tragic times. Our hearts are with the civilians of eastern Ukraine who were caught up in this situation.
  • Naftali Bennett (2022) cited in "Bennett refrains from condemning Russia in first remarks since invasion of Ukraine" on The Times of Israel (24 February 2022).

• Are you seriously keep on asking me about Palestinian civilians [sic]? What's wrong with you?
  • Sky News interview following the 2023 Hamas attack on Israel and Israel's subsequent military response, October 2023.

Quotes about Naftali Bennett

• He is my nemesis. I never felt I would say that
  • Dorit Rabinyan Interview (2017)