Israel’s 26th Knesset will be sworn in this afternoon in a festive ceremony attended by President Isaac Herzog, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana, as 120 lawmakers take their seats in the newly elected parliament, 46 of whom will be serving for the first time, The Times of Israel reports.
While lawmakers arrive throughout the day for official portraits and photographs with their families, the official proceedings will only get under way at 3:20 p.m., when a reception will be held in the Knesset plaza, where Herzog will be welcomed by Ohana and an honor guard, accompanied by trumpet fanfares from the IDF orchestra.
The president will also lay a wreath at the memorial to fallen soldiers and victims of terrorism.
The inaugural plenum session will begin at 4 p.m., with Herzog delivering remarks before inviting Ohana to take the oath of office and handing over the chairmanship of the session. Following Ohana’s address, each of the 120 lawmakers will be called by name to rise and declare, “I pledge.” Avi Harush, whose son Sgt. Reef Harush was killed in combat in Gaza in April 2024, will recite a psalm during the ceremony.
The festivities will conclude with the traditional photograph of the heads of the elected party slates in the Knesset’s Chagall Hall, where Ohana and Netanyahu will deliver remarks, followed by musical performances and a toast to the new parliament.
While Netanyahu and Ohana will feature prominently in today’s proceedings, it is Yashar chairman Gadi Eisenkot who has received the mandate to form the next government, after securing the backing of 67 lawmakers. Eisenkot and his political partners, who command a parliamentary majority, have already submitted requests to replace Ohana, a close Netanyahu ally, as Knesset speaker, with a vote expected to be held within the coming week.
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