Israel’s Netanyahu Rushed to Hospital, His Office Says He Was Likely Dehydrated

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convenes a cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister's office in Jerusalem, February 23, 2023. (Reuters)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convenes a cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister's office in Jerusalem, February 23, 2023. (Reuters)
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Israel’s Netanyahu Rushed to Hospital, His Office Says He Was Likely Dehydrated

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convenes a cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister's office in Jerusalem, February 23, 2023. (Reuters)
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convenes a cabinet meeting at the Prime Minister's office in Jerusalem, February 23, 2023. (Reuters)

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.



Russia Says French Citizen Pleads Guilty to Illegally Collecting Military Details

People walk on the Red Square outside the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, 02 July 2024. The temperature in Moscow exceeded 32 degrees Celsius. EPA/MAXIM SHIPENKOV
People walk on the Red Square outside the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, 02 July 2024. The temperature in Moscow exceeded 32 degrees Celsius. EPA/MAXIM SHIPENKOV
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Russia Says French Citizen Pleads Guilty to Illegally Collecting Military Details

People walk on the Red Square outside the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, 02 July 2024. The temperature in Moscow exceeded 32 degrees Celsius. EPA/MAXIM SHIPENKOV
People walk on the Red Square outside the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, 02 July 2024. The temperature in Moscow exceeded 32 degrees Celsius. EPA/MAXIM SHIPENKOV

Russian investigators said on Wednesday that French researcher Laurent Vinatier, who was detained last month and accused of failing to register as a foreign agent while illegally collecting sensitive military information, had pleaded guilty during questioning.

Vinatier, an expert with long experience of working in Russia, was shown last month being arrested in a central Moscow restaurant by masked officers from the Federal Security Service (FSB), the main successor to the Soviet-era KGB.
He is accused of failing to register as a foreign agent and intentionally collecting military information which could be used by foreign intelligence services to damage the security of Russia, Reuters reported.
French President Emmanuel Macron denied that Vinatier, an employee of the Center for Humanitarian Dialogue (HD), a Swiss-based conflict mediation group, worked for the French state. Macron described his arrest as part of a disinformation campaign by Moscow.
"The French citizen has pleaded guilty in a criminal case on illegal collection of information in the field of Russian military activities," Russia's Investigative Committee said in a statement.
"During the interrogation, he admitted his guilt in full."
A representative of HD had no immediate comment.
Russian investigators said that Vinatier had for several years failed to comply with the Russian law on foreign agents and had collected military information at meetings with Russian citizens.
The Investigative Committee said that seven witnesses who Vinatier had tried to collect military information from had been questioned - and that it had recordings of some of their meetings.
"A linguistic forensic examination has been scheduled based on audio recordings of these meetings," the committee said.
In a statement following Vinatier's arrest, his employer HD said: "In the course of HD’s activities as an impartial and independent mediation organization, our people work around the world and routinely meet with a wide range of officials, experts and other parties with the aim of advancing efforts to prevent, mitigate and resolve armed conflict."
Vinatier, 47, could face up to five years in prison. He was placed in pre-trial custody until Aug. 5, despite a request to free him endorsed by the French embassy.