Netanyahu says he’ll undergo surgery tonight to implant a cardiac pacemaker

A week after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was hospitalized for dehydration and had a heart monitoring device implanted, the premier says that device beeped earlier in the evening, which necessitates immediate surgery to implant a pacemaker, a device that prevents one’s heart from beating too slowly.

In a video message, Netanyahu, 73, says he will undergo the procedure tonight, that he’s feeling “excellent” and that he’s adhering to his doctors’ advice.

Netanyahu says his medics told him he’s expected to be released tomorrow from Sheba Medical Center in Ramat Gan in time to take part in potential votes on the coalition’s controversial “reasonableness” bill. The Knesset begins debating the bill tomorrow morning, ahead of its second and third (final) readings, expected Monday or Tuesday.

The legislation, part of the wider plan to overhaul the judiciary, has drawn intense opposition, with hundreds of thousands protesting and some 10,000 reservists saying they’ll halt their volunteer duty if it passes into law.