Benjamin Netanyahu Steps Away From Middle East Conflict For Prostate Removal Surgery Today
Date
12/29/2024 7:00:44 AM
(MENAFN- Live Mint) It has been a rough year for Benjamin Netanyahu as Israel continues to wage war against Gaza - with recurring health problems and his own corruption trial. The senior politician has faced a string of health issues in recent years despite efforts to project himself as a healthy, energetic leader in public. Doctors implanted a pacemaker following a health scare in July last year and Netanyahu underwent a hernia operation in March. Now, the Israeli PM is slated to undergo prostate removal surgery on Sunday after being diagnosed with a urinary tract infection.
According to an update shared by his office, Netanyahu was diagnosed with an urinary tract infection on Wednesday stemming from a benign enlargement of his prostate. The infection was treated successfully with antibiotics but a procedure on Sunday will remove his prostate.
The procedure will require him to be fully sedated - with an acting PM taking over the top role during the operation. His lawyer Amit Hadad also told the court overseeing the corruption trial that Netanyahu would be hospitalised for“a number of days" next week.
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Netanyahu does not have a permanent stand-in for emergencies. One of his cabinet members are usually appointed to take over ad-hoc in such cases. However it has not been announced which of the ministers will act has interim leader during the operation and recovery period.
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Netanyahu insists he is in excellent health and his office has worked to craft a public image that backs that up. It releases footage of him touring war zones in full protective gear flanked by gruff military officers, or meeting with defense officials on windswept hilltops in youthful dark shades and puffer jackets. But that image was shattered last year when Netanyahu's doctors revealed that he had a heart condition - a problem that he had apparently long known about but concealed from the public.
A week after a fainting spell, Netanyahu was urgently fitted with a pacemaker to control his heartbeat. Only then did staff at the Sheba Medical Center reveal that Netanyahu has for years experienced a condition that can cause irregular heartbeats.
He will be in hospital at a time when international mediators are pushing Israel and Hamas to reach a ceasefire in Gaza as violence there rages on and fighting between Israel and Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels intensifies.
(With inputs from agencies)
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