JERUSALEM: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Saturday was rushed to a hospital, where he was assessed to be in “good condition” as he underwent a medical evaluation, his office said. Initial tests determined the Israeli leader was suffering from dehydration.
A statement from Netanyahu’s office said that he had spent Friday enjoying Israel’s Sea of Galilee at a time of high summer temperatures. It said he felt dizzy and his doctor instructed him to go to Sheba Hospital, near the coastal city of Tel Aviv.
The statement said initial tests found everything to be sound, and that it appeared Netanyahu was suffering from dehydration. It said doctors had ordered further tests.
Israel is currently in the midst of a heat wave, with temperatures in the mid-30s degrees Celsius, (mid-90s in Fahrenheit).
Netanyahu, 73, is Israel’s longest serving leader. He has served multiple terms stretching over 15 years in office. His current far-right government, a collection of religious and ultranationalist parties, took office last December.
Netanyahu is said to be in generally good health, though he was briefly hospitalized last October after feeling unwell during prayers on Yom Kippur, day when observant Jews fast.
Tens of thousands of Israelis have held weekly demonstrations against Netanyahu’s government to protest his plan to overhaul the country’s judiciary.
Netanyahu’s allies say the plan is needed to rein in the power of unelected judges. But his opponents say the plan will destroy the country’s fragile system of checks and balances and concentrate power in the hands of Netanyahu and his allies.
Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid issued a statement wishing Netanyahu a “full recovery and good health.”
“Feel better,” Lapid said on Twitter.