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Israel PM Benjamin Netanyahu discharged from hospital

Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu was taken to hospital, apparently suffering from heat and dehydration.

Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu was taken to hospital, apparently suffering from heat and dehydration. Photo: AAP

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been discharged after an overnight hospital stay for check-ups and monitoring following a dizzy spell.

Mr Netanyahu, 73, was rushed to Sheba Medical Centre on Saturday after feeling mild dizziness.

His office said he had left the hospital about midday after his test results were normal and he was feeling “very good”.

The medical centre said Mr Netanyahu was in “excellent” condition after a series of tests, including cardiovascular ones.

Mr Netanyahu’s office said he had spent the previous day at the Sea of Galilee, a popular vacation spot in northern Israel where temperatures climbed to about 40 degrees Celsius amid a stifling country-wide heatwave.

After a series of tests, the initial assessment was that the veteran Israeli leader was dehydrated.

After being hospitalised, Mr Netanyahu released a video on social media. He said that he had been out in the sun on Friday without wearing a hat and without water. “Not a good idea,” he said.

Doctors ordered him to remain in the hospital overnight for further observation, and his weekly cabinet meeting was delayed by a day and rescheduled for Monday, his office said.

Mr Netanyahu 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 in December.

Mr Netanyahu is said to be in generally good health, though he was briefly hospitalised in October after feeling unwell during prayers on Yom Kippur, a day when observant Jews fast.

The Israeli leader faces pressure on multiple fronts.

He is on trial for multiple corruption charges in a case that has bitterly divided the nation.

His government’s hard-line policies toward Palestinians have drawn international criticism and antagonised relations with the United States, Israel’s closest and most important ally.

At home, tens of thousands of Israelis have held weekly demonstrations against Mr Netanyahu’s government to protest about his plan to overhaul the country’s judiciary.

Mr 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 Mr Netanyahu and his allies.

-Reuters

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