Israel’s Netanyahu leaves official residence after 12 years

Jerusalem, Jul 11 ??(EFE).- Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday left the official residence of the Israeli prime minister a month after a new government ended his 12-year grip on power.

His successor Naftali Bennett will use the residence on Balfour street in Jerusalem mainly for official events. He plans to continue to live with his family in his current home in the central city of Ra’anana near Tel Aviv.

Bennett told Netanyahu, who had lived with his wife Sara in the Jerusalem house for 12 consecutive years, to move out in two weeks after the latter received former US ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley in the residence on June 13, when the new government was approved by the parliament .

Netanyahu is set to move to his vacation home in the coastal town of Caesarea, until security measures are installed in his Jerusalem apartment.

Bennett, a far-right politician, is to hold the prime minister position for two years, and then the leader of centrist Yesh Atid, Yair Lapid, will take over until 2025.

The Balfour residence had been the epicenter of Netanyahu’s power and was also the site of massive demonstrations over the past year against the former premier, who has been indicted on charges of corruption.EFE

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