Live Update 
From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, December 27, 2022
From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, December 27, 2022
Likud’s Amsalem to remain a backbencher after Netanyahu refuses him senior position
MK David Amsalem speaks during a plenum session at the Knesset in Jerusalem on February 7, 2022. (Olivier Fitoussi/Flash90)
Likud MK Dudi Amsalem says he will remain a backbencher after incoming prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu refuses to appoint him as Knesset speaker or justice minister.
Netanyahu is meeting with Likud MKs as he seeks to fill his remaining ministerial slots.
Amsalem, a firebrand and long-time Netanyahu loyalist who clashed with the Likud leader in recent months, says that Netanyahu “made it clear” he would not get one of the two posts he had demanded.
“I will remain an ordinary MK,” he tweets. “Unfortunately this is the price you pay for being loyal to your values.”
Reports said Netanyahu had tried to convince him to take on another portfolio.
