Ronen Zubrun/Reuters
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appears in a file photo on February 18.
CNN
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu underwent surgery to repair a hernia and is in “excellent health”, according to a statement from Jerusalem's Hadassah Hospital Ein Kerem on Sunday.
Aron Pikarsky, the hospital's chief of general surgery, said in an early morning video statement that the surgery was “completed successfully” and that Prime Minister Netanyahu “is awake, talking to his family and the situation is perfect.”
Netanyahu, 74, was diagnosed with a hernia during a routine checkup on Saturday, his office announced earlier. His office said he was given anesthesia for the surgery.
The operation forced Israeli leaders to temporarily step back from action after the Oct. 7 attack, a state at war with Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Israeli Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Justice Yariv Levin replaced Prime Minister Netanyahu while he was incapacitated.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held a press conference in Jerusalem on Sunday ahead of the surgery, saying he was optimistic about the outcome of the surgery and would return to work “very soon.”
“I guarantee you that he will survive this treatment and return soon,” Prime Minister Netanyahu said.
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Yariv Levin (left) replaced the prime minister in a powerless state.
According to Egyptian media reports, the operation took place amid renegotiations between Israel and Hamas in Cairo.
Negotiations to secure the release of the remaining Israeli hostages held by the militant group in exchange for a ceasefire in the conflict that has killed more than 32,000 Gazans reached an impasse last week.
This will be Netanyahu's second surgery since returning to office at the end of 2022. Last summer's health scare ended with Israel's leader being fitted with a pacemaker to cure a temporary heart block.
Prime Minister Netanyahu suffered from a hernia in 2013, which also required surgery.
According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, a hernia is a gap in the abdominal muscle wall that allows material inside the abdomen to protrude.
