Twenty-twenty-two was “one of the most dangerous years for law enforcement in recent history,” the largest police advocacy group in the country said Wednesday amid a nationwide crime surge in Democratic-run cities.

“Last year we saw more officers shot in the line of duty than any other since the National Fraternal Order of Police began recording this data in late 2015,” group president Patrick Yoes said in a statement. “It is unlike anything I’ve seen in my 36 years of law enforcement.”

Three-hundred-twenty-three police officers were shot and 60 killed from gunfire this year as of Dec. 19, according to a report from the Fraternal Order of Police, which counts more than 350,000 police officers as members. That’s a 13 percent increase from this time in 2019 and the highest number of shootings since the group first tracked the data in 2015.

The group’s statement comes as so-called progressive district attorneys across the country push for lax prosecution that often puts violent criminals back on the street. In Virginia, for example, a Soros-funded Democratic prosecutor is being sued for letting a child rapist walk free. Another Soros-backed Democratic prosecutor, Larry Krasner in Philadelphia, oversaw 500 murders this year, bringing the murder rate to levels not seen since 1990. He has repeatedly failed to prosecute violent criminals.

Yoes pointed to Democratic policies, such as failing to “prosecute violent offenders” and “releasing repeat offenders arrested for crimes who show a propensity for escalation of violence,” as causes for the crime spike.

“Law-abiding citizens saw the real-life consequences of what happens when elected officials embrace pro-criminal, revolving-door policies and make decisions that put the interests of violent offenders ahead of public safety,” he said.

The post 2022 ‘One of the Most Dangerous Years’ for Police Amid Nationwide Crime Spike, Says Law Enforcement Group appeared first on Washington Free Beacon.

Sam Bankman-Fried will be taken to the airport in The Bahamas at 6 p.m. EST (2300 GMT) on Wednesday, a person familiar with the matter said, after the FTX founder was taken to prison following a courthouse appearance where he consented to be extradited to the United States.

Federal prosecutors in Manhattan last week charged the 30-year-old cryptocurrency mogul with stealing billions of dollars in FTX customer assets to plug losses at his hedge fund, Alameda Research, in what U.S. Attorney Damian Williams called “one of the biggest financial frauds in American history.”

Bankman-Fried left the courthouse, surrounded by guards with assault weapons, and entered a vehicle, according to Reuters Video.

Bankman-Fried was arrested on a U.S. extradition request last week in The Bahamas, where he lives and where FTX is based. He initially said he would contest extradition, but Reuters and other outlets reported over the weekend that he would reverse that decision.

Bankman-Fried decided to agree to extradition in part out of a “desire to make the relevant customers whole,” according to an affidavit read in court on Wednesday and dated Dec 20.

Dressed in a suit, Bankman-Fried stepped up to the witness box in court, where he spoke clearly and steadily as he was sworn in.

“Yes, I do wish to waive my right to such formal extradition proceedings,” he told Judge Shaka Serville.

Bankman-Fried’s defense lawyer said his client had eaten, was in good health and was “anxious to leave.”

The judge said he was satisfied that all legal requirements for extradition had been met and that Bankman-Fried had not been “forced, coerced or threatened” into making the decision.

“I therefore formally commit you to custody while you await your extradition,” Serville said.

The hearing was adjourned after the statements.

During Wednesday’s hearing, Bankman-Fried’s lawyer requested that the “rule of speciality” be followed. This rule, which is in The Bahamas’ extradition treaty with the United States, says a person can be tried only on the charges for which they are extradited.

Bankman-Fried’s U.S.-based defense lawyer, Mark Cohen, did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday.

Bankman-Fried has acknowledged risk-management failures at FTX, but has said he does not believe he has criminal liability.

Bankman-Fried rode a crypto boom to become a billionaire several times over and an influential U.S. political donor, before FTX’s crash wiped out his wealth and tarnished his reputation. The collapse was driven by a wave of customer withdrawals amid concerns over commingling of funds with Alameda.

The $32 billion exchange declared bankruptcy on Nov. 11, and Bankman-Fried stepped down as CEO the same day.

He has since been detained at The Bahamas Department of Corrections in Nassau, known as Fox Hill prison. The U.S. State Department in a 2021 report described conditions at the facility as “harsh,” citing overcrowding, rodent infestation and prisoners relying on buckets as toilets.

Local authorities say conditions have since improved.

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NASA has formally retired its Mars InSight lander, the first robotic probe specially designed to study the deep interior of a distant world, four years after it arrived on the surface of the red planet, the U.S. space agency announced on Wednesday.

Mission controllers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) near Los Angeles determined the mission was over when two consecutive attempts to re-establish radio contact with the lander failed, a sign that InSight’s solar-powered batteries had run out of energy.

NASA predicted in late October that the spacecraft would reach the end of its operational life in a matter of weeks due to increasingly heavy accumulations of dust on its solar panels, depleting the ability of its batteries to recharge.

JPL engineers will continue to listen for a signal from the lander, just in case, but hearing from InSight again is unlikely, NASA said. The three-legged stationary probe last communicated with Earth on Dec. 15.

InSight landed on Mars in late November 2018 with instruments designed to detect planetary seismic rumblings never before measured anywhere but Earth, and its original two-year mission was later extended to four.

From its perch in a vast and relatively flat plain called Elysium Planitia just north of the planet’s equator, the lander has helped scientists gain new understanding of Mars’ internal structure.

Researchers said InSight’s data revealed the thickness of the planet’s outer crust, the size and density of its inner core and the structure of the mantle that lies in between.

One of InSight’s chief accomplishments was establishing that the red planet is, indeed, seismically active, recording more than 1,300 marsquakes. It also measured seismic waves generated by meteorite impacts.

“The seismic data alone from this discovery program mission offers tremendous insights not just into Mars but other rocky bodies, including Earth,” said Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator of NASA’s science mission directorate.

One such impact a year ago was found to have gouged boulder-sized chunks of water ice surprisingly close to Mars’ equator.

Even as InSight retires, a more recent robotic visitor to the red planet, NASA’s science rover Perseverance, continues to prepare a collection of Martian mineral samples for future analysis on Earth.

This week, Perseverance deposited the first of 10 sample tubes it was directed to leave at a surface collection site on Mars as a backup cache, in case the primary supply stored in the rover’s belly cannot for some reason be transferred as planned to a retrieval spacecraft in the future, NASA said.

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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy will face a critical audience when he addresses a joint session of the U.S. Congress on Wednesday: House Republicans who could hold up billions of dollars in war aid starting next month.

President Joe Biden’s administration has sent almost $50 billion in foreign assistance to Ukraine since Russia began its invasion of its neighbor in February, including humanitarian, financial and military support. Congress, currently controlled by Biden’s Democrats, is expected to approve $44.9 billion more this week in a bill funding the federal government.

Zelenskiy, during a news conference with Biden at the White House on Wednesday, thanked Congress for the funding it had authorized so far and said he believed lawmakers would approve the next tranche.

“I believe that despite any changes in the composition of Congress, bicameral and bipartisan support will be maintained,” Zelenskiy said.

Nonetheless, the funding stream could slow starting on Jan. 3, when Republicans take a narrow majority in the House of Representatives. Some hard-line members of the caucus have called for an end to the aid that has helped Ukraine fight Russian forces, instead calling for an audit to trace how the money previously allocated has been spent.

All 57 House votes against a bill providing more than $40 billion for Ukraine in May came from Republicans.

“No more blank checks to Ukraine,” Republican Representative Andy Biggs wrote on Twitter hours before Zelenskiy’s visit to Washington. Biggs, a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, has emerged as the main challenger to House Republican leader Kevin McCarthy in the House speakership election, slated for Jan. 3.

Fellow hardline House Republican Paul Gosar voiced a similar view on Twitter, as did conservative Representative Andrew Clyde, who criticized the timing of Zelenskiy’s visit.

“It’s entirely inappropriate for President Zelenskiy to make his personal pleas before Congress during the middle of the omnibus process, as he stands to greatly benefit to the tune of $45 billion from the massive spending spree,” Clyde told Reuters, referring to the year-end spending bill currently working its way through Congress.

“The United States cannot continue pouring American taxpayer dollars into Ukraine without a full audit of the billions of dollars in aid already sent overseas.”

The early weeks of 2023 could feature a leadership battle in the House, during which time legislating would likely grind to a halt. And even when the Republican-led House agrees on its leader, deep divisions between it, Biden and the Democratic-led Senate, could make it hard for lawmakers to agree on new initiatives.

While they are unlikely to stop aid altogether, Republicans could slow or pare back the assistance, or use it as leverage to win concessions from Democrats on Republican priorities like clamping down on immigration across the southern border with Mexico.

McCarthy said in October that Ukraine would no longer receive a “blank check” from the United States.

Funding for Ukraine puts historic priorities of the Republican party at odds: a strong defense and opposition to Russia versus a desire to rein in government spending. Adding to the complexity is the allegiance of many in the party to former President Donald Trump’s “America First” policies.

Some of his allies in Congress have viewed Ukraine’s government as corrupt since Trump’s first impeachment trial.

House Democrats voted to impeach Trump in 2019 on charges he held up military aid for Ukraine to put pressure on Zelenskiy to investigate one of Biden’s sons. The issue could loom large again as Trump seeks the Republican presidential nomination in 2024.

Many House Republicans insist that they do support Ukraine. Representative Michael McCaul, in line to be the next chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said in a November interview with Reuters that the party wanted more “oversight and accountability” and but also that it wanted to help Ukraine and “avoid global conflict.”

Democratic Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer acknowledged the concern in a Senate speech on Wednesday.

“I hope all House Republicans will attend the Zelenskiy address this evening. And when they do, they should listen to President Zelenskiy describe the horror his people have endured at the hands of (Russian President) Vladimir Putin,” Schumer said. “Now is not the time, not the time to take our foot off the gas when it comes to helping Ukraine.”

Twitter users have spoken: They want Elon Musk to step down as the CEO of Twitter.

Perhaps it’s the racism and antisemitism that immediately spiked under Musk’s lax moderation policy. Maybe it’s the trolls who can now get blue check verification for just a few dollars. Or it could just be that the site keeps breaking.

Users voted on the topic in a Twitter poll posted by Musk himself on Sunday, in totally normal and responsible CEO behavior. When posting the poll, Musk promised to adhere to the results.

Should I step down as head of Twitter? I will abide by the results of this poll.

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 18, 2022

Of course, once the results showed that 57.5% of Twitter users participating in the poll wanted him to step down, Musk indulged in some theories about bots throwing the results. But on Tuesday he announced in a tweet that he would resign from the role as soon as he can find “someone foolish enough to take the job,” but would continue to run the software and server teams.

Since Musk took over less than two months ago, the company has zigged and zagged through abrupt changes to its policy and business model, all while Musk has laid off nearly half the company’s staff.

The result has been, to be blunt, bad for the Jews. Researchers found that the number of antisemitic posts on Twitter increased by 61% in the two weeks after Musk took over. Musk has returned Twitter privileges to various accounts that Twitter had previously banned for hate speech or disinformation, including Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene and former President Donald Trump. He has allowed racial epithets on the platform, which numerous users took immediate advantage of by gratuitously tweeting slurs. And while he has banned links to many other social media sites, including Facebook and Instagram, from Twitter, links to far right social media sites including Gab are still allowed.

It’s hard to imagine a new Twitter CEO somehow making the platform even worse. But some of the people likely to come up in discussion for the role don’t exactly have stellar records on antisemitism, either. We’ve taken a look at the resumes of a few of the candidates we expect to see in the mix — and asked whether any of them could possibly be good for the Jews.

Jared Kushner

Elon Musk and Jared Kushner watch the World Cup final, looking absolutely captivated. Courtesy of Getty Images

Jared Kushner and Musk were spotted together in a VIP box at the World Cup finale, so we know they’re friendly. And if Kushner is interested in Twitter, he seems like a likely candidate for new CEO, not least because Musk borrowed a significant amount of money to buy Twitter in his showy takeover and payments on those loans are coming due. Kushner, meanwhile, now runs a private equity firm, Affinity Fund, with an estimated $2 billion in Saudi investment money to play with. And Kushner’s fund has invested in tech before.

We know that Saudi leaders, who presumably have a large hand in Kushner’s venture, given that they hold a stake of at least 28% in the company, are interested in Twitter: Saudi Prince Alaweed bin Talal bin Abdulaziz bought the second-largest share in the company after Musk’s takeover.

One crucial fly in the ointment: Kushner’s firm is backed by Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, who is at odds with Musk’s shareholding prince. A Kushner takeover could be a chess move in Saudi power plays — or be forestalled by them.

Would it be good for the Jews? 

Kushner is Jewish, so one would hope he’d take pains to eradicate white supremacy, antisemitism, violence and hate speech on Twitter. On the other hand, he worked closely with Trump, who fomented white supremacy, antisemitism, violence and hate speech on Twitter (as well as, of course, on many other platforms) before being removed from the platform for inciting real-world violence. And Kushner’s focus appears to be on Israel, not on American Jews. Can’t get too optimistic.

Mark Zuckerberg

Imagine if Zuckerberg owned every major form of social media. Courtesy of Getty Images

In the last year, Facebook parent company Meta’s stock plummeted, its usership finally stopped growing and the company announced massive layoffs (right around the same time that Musk fired the majority of Twitter’s staff, as it happens). 

Founder Mark Zuckerberg probably has his hands full managing all of that, but maybe he’s looking to absorb his competitor into the Meta portfolio.

While Facebook has far more active users than Twitter — Facebook’s active users are on the order of billions, while Twitter’s are in the millions — Twitter’s brand is more hip and relevant, even with the added baggage of Musk’s leadership. Facebook has become the domain of your grandparents. Instagram, owned by Zuckerberg’s company Meta, is better than Facebook, but largely overrun with identical influencers and ads.

Twitter, meanwhile, still churns out memes and powers trends. It seems unlikely that Musk would be open to a Zuckerberg takeover — Facebook and Instagram are currently among the sites users are banned from linking to on Twitter — and it also would probably be illegal for Meta to own yet another competitor. (The Federal Trade Commission is already suing Meta for breaking antitrust laws.) Still, Zuckerberg has bought Instagram and WhatsApp already, so it seems plausible that he’d manage to buy Twitter, too.

Would it be good for the Jews? 

Zuckerberg is a notable square, so he’d be likely to run the company’s relevance into the ground immediately, perhaps by turning Twitter into a metaverse-style platform where we all float around with no legs. That might be a net positive — antisemitism can’t flourish on a platform no one uses. On the other hand, Jewish Twitter has grown into a lively community, and it would be a real loss if it crumbled because of a poorly managed platform.

Zuckerberg is Jewish and gives to Jewish groups, but Facebook struggles to moderate antisemitism and white supremacy just as much as any other social media platform — which is to say, it struggles a lot. I think this one would be kind of a wash for the Jews. Definitely bad for anyone who doesn’t like monopolies, though.

Andrew Torba

Torba, wearing his Christian Nationalism hat, during a video posted to GabTV Courtesy of GabTV

Torba is the founder of free speech social media site Gab, which is largely infamous for hosting the Tree of Life shooter’s antisemitic screeds before he shot 11 Jews in a synagogue in 2018. It’s also known for its plethora of hate speech and for welcoming figures such as Marjorie Taylor Greene after Twitter banned them.

Torba might be concerned that Gab will lose its highest profile users now that they can return to Twitter, and want to combine forces. And while Torba is pretty radioactive in mainstream media and politics — a terrible PR choice — Musk loves a good troll.

Plus, Gab is not currently one of the sites that Twitter users are banned from sharing links to, so perhaps he is on friendlier terms with Musk than, say, Zuckerberg is. After all, Torba and Musk share their stated values of radical free speech, which includes allowing open hate speech and conspiracy theories.

Would it be good for the Jews?

This one is clearcut: no. Torba would be very, very bad for the Jews. First of all, Gab is absolutely overflowing with antisemitism, so we already know how Torba runs a social media platform.

Plus, Torba is a proud Christian nationalist who currently leverages Gab to fund and rabble-rouse for his hoped-for Christian future. Torba sends out regular hysterical emails about the corruption of both Christianity and America by non-Christian Americans. Jews do not have a place in Torba’s world, or on his Twitter.

Jack Dorsey

Jack Dorsey looking like he’d really like to stay at least semi-retired. Courtesy of Getty Images

Dorsey, Twitter’s founder and former CEO, has stepped away from the head role at Twitter before, only to return, and then step down yet again. Third time’s the charm?

Would it be good for the Jews?

It’s not that Twitter under Dorsey was devoid of conspiracy theories or antisemitism. But after Jan. 6, Twitter changed tactics and got far more vigilant. The platform began banning users who engaged in hate speech or spread misinformation including, of course, Trump.

Dorsey’s return, and a return to the most recent status quo, seems like it would be an improvement. It’s a low bar, but baby steps.

The post Could Elon Musk’s replacement CEO make Twitter good for the Jews? appeared first on The Forward.

Workers at a Chick-fil-A franchise who were paid in meals instead of actual money will get a paycheck under a Department of Labor ruling.

Hollis Johnson/Business Insider

• A North Carolina Chick-fil-A owner owes back pay to people who worked for food vouchers. 
• The Department of Labor is also fining the owner more than $6,000 for child labor law violations.
• Minors are only allowed to do some tasks and work only limited hours in fast food. 

A Chick-fil-A in North Carolina has been ordered by the US Department of Labor to issue paychecks to workers who were paid in chicken meals instead of actual money.

The restaurant sparked criticism after it posted a now-deleted message on its public Facebook page in July that appeared to ask people to work for food — in the form of Chick-fil-A entrees — instead of money.

“We are looking for volunteers for our new Drive Thru Express! Earn 5 free entrees per shift (1 hr) worked,” the post read. “Message us for details.”

Facebook Screenshot

By the afternoon of July 27, the post was apparently deleted.

Chick-fil-A’s corporate office did not immediately respond to Insider’s request for comment on the Labor Department ruling, but the company previously said that it did not endorse the program.

“Most restaurants are individually owned and operated, and it was a program at an individually owned restaurant,” a Chick-fil-A spokesperson said in July. Joel Benson, the franchise owner, didn’t return Insider’s request for comment about the most recent fine or about the July incident.

The restaurant was ordered this week by the Labor Department to pay $235 in back wages to seven employees who worked directing drive-thru traffic in exchange for meal vouchers. Having the workers do so was a violation of the Fair Labor Standards Act, the Labor Department said.

“Employers are responsible to pay workers for all of the hours worked and the payment must be made in cash or legal tender,” Wage and Hour Division District Director Richard Blaylock said in a statement for the Labor Department.

Separately, the Labor Department said the Hendersonville, North Carolina, restaurant owes $6,450 in civil penalties over child labor violations. The department said the restaurant allowed three minors to operate a trash compactor, which violates federal labor law. 

Fast-food chains historically rely on teenagers to staff locations, especially amidst a shortage of other workers. Workers under 18 are governed by the Fair Labor Standards Act on what jobs the can do and which hours they can work, with additional restrictions for workers under 16. 

The Department of Labor has pursued a number of other child labor cases in fast food recently: In August, a Tampa, Florida, Chick-fil-A franchisee was fined more than $12 million for scheduling 14 and 15-year-old workers outside of legally permitted hours. In early December, a Pennsylvania McDonald’s franchisee was fined almost $60,000 for violations including 101 young teen workers across 13 locations. 

Do you have a story to share about a retail or restaurant chain? Email this reporter at mmeisenzahl@businessinsider.com.

• Shiki Wraps are reusable gift wraps made from recycled plastic bottles.
• Each wrap is made from up to seven plastic water bottles.
• The startup wants to reduce the extra 7 million pounds of waste generated by single-use holiday gift wrap.

Meagan Downey is the founder of Shiki Wraps, a startup making reusable gift wrap out of plastic bottles. She aims to reduce America’s extra 7 million pounds of holiday trash.

A notable investor isn’t a fan of Elon Musk being Twitter CEO.

Adrees Latif/Reuters

• Ross Gerber, a Tesla and Twitter investor, says that Elon Musk “isn’t suited” to be the CEO of the latter.
• He wants Musk to focus on the product, and let a “media-savvy” person be the front-facing CEO.
• Musk said this week he would resign if he found “someone foolish enough to take the job.”

A major investor in Elon Musk’s companies Tesla and Twitter thinks that Musk should step away from being the face of the latter company.

Ross Gerber, CEO of Gerber Kawasaki Wealth and Investment Management, told Bloomberg TV on Wednesday that Musk wasn’t suited to be the social-media company’s “front-facing CEO,” and that it was hurting Tesla.

“I’m very happy with the direction that Elon is taking Twitter as far as transparency, improving the technology, but I also am very aware of what it’s like running a media company and the incredible challenges of Twitter,” Gerber said. 

He added, “I think they’re ultimately going to do a good job. What I really think is that Elon isn’t suited to be the front-facing CEO of Twitter, and that’s that.”

Gerber said that he wants Musk to focus on the Twitter product, and let a “media-savvy person deal with advertisers and the media.”

He said that the “politicization” of Musk’s ownership of Twitter has hurt the brand of Tesla, where Musk is also CEO, and would benefit by Musk not being CEO of Twitter.

Musk did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Insider.

Tesla’s stock price is down 65% for the year. Gerber said in a Twitter Spaces discussion on Tuesday that Tesla is “doing great,” but the “only problem is the optics of having the CEO on Twitter every day discussing the problems of Hunter Biden.”

Musk posted a Twitter poll Sunday asking whether he should resign as Twitter CEO and promised to abide by the results. Over 57% of the 17.5 million respondents said “yes.”

On Tuesday, Musk said he would resign when he found “someone foolish enough to take the job.”

Under Armour announces new CEO

Alex Tai/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

• Under Armour on Wednesday named Stephanie Linnartz CEO.
• In recent years, the company’s lost ground against rivals Nike and Adidas
• Linnartz, whose strengths include technology and loyalty programs, starts work on February 27.

Under Armour late Wednesday named a veteran hotel executive the company’s next CEO. 

Stephanie Linnartz will start work on February 27 and try to make up lost digital ground with Nike and others. Linnartz, who most recently served as the president of Marriott International, also will be charged with rebuilding the company’s relationships with consumers.

Under Armour has underperformed its corporate rivals of late.  Over its last two fiscal years, Under Armour’s revenue is up nearly 8% to $5.6 billion, while Nike’s revenue increased nearly 25% in its last two fiscal years to $46.7 billion.

In a securities filing, the company noted Linnartz’ accomplishments in corporate leadership, including in digital and technology, suggesting that, like Nike and others, Under Armour wants to ramp up sales on its apps and website and more fully connect with consumers online. 

New Under Armour CEO Stephanie Linnartz

Courtesy Under Armour

In a news release, Under Armour Executive Chair Kevin Plank credited Linnartz with leading Marriott’s “multi-billion dollar digital transformation, driving scale through continuous brand innovation across the portfolio.”

Plank also noted Linnartz’ success at building loyalty programs, an area where rival Nike is finding a new pocket of growth. At Marriott, Linnartz oversaw the company’s Marriott Bonvoy membership program.

Before serving as president of Marriott, Linnartz served as Marriott Group’s president of consumer operations, technology and emerging businesses. She’s also on the board of Home Depot. 

Colin Browne, who’s serving as interim CEO, will return to his former role as chief operating officer. 

Linnartz will earn an annual base salary of $1.3 million and be eligible for a bonus equal to 165% of her salary, according to a securities filing. She’ll also get stock worth $8 million and a $375,000 hiring bonus. 

Under Armour announced Linnartz’ hiring after the market close. Shares were down slightly in after-hours trading. 

JERUSALEM (Reuters) -Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said on Wednesday he had secured a deal to form a new government after weeks of unexpectedly tough negotiations with religious and far-right coalition partners.

“I have managed (to form a government),” Netanyahu said on Twitter, minutes before a midnight deadline set by President Isaac Herzog. A Herzog spokesperson confirmed that Netanyahu’s statement had been received.

Netanyahu’s conservative Likud and like-minded religious-nationalist parties close to the ultra-Orthodox and West Bank settler communities won a comfortable majority in a Nov 1 election, promising him 64 of parliaments’s 120 seats.

But agreement to form a government was held up by disputes over a package of proposed legislation on issues ranging from planning authority in the West Bank to ministerial control over the police.

The new government – which Netanyahu must now present within a week – will take office after a year that has seen the worst levels of violence in the West Bank in more than a decade, with more than 150 Palestinians and more than 20 Israelis killed.

A stable government would be a departure from a turbulent period that saw Israelis go to the polls five times in less than four years. But the weeks of wrangling have made clear that the coalition may still face significant internal tensions.

Its makeup as well as proposals that would give parliament greater powers to overrule court decisions have also caused alarm in Israel and abroad. Critics see a threat to the independence of the justice system.

The inclusion of the hardliners Itamar Ben-Gvir of the ultranationalist Jewish Power party and Bezalel Smotrich from the far-right Religious Zionism party has shocked Palestinians and liberal Israelis.

Both oppose Palestinian statehood and support extending Israeli sovereignty into the West Bank, adding another obstacle to a two-state solution, the resolution backed by Palestinian leaders, the United States and European governments.

Ben-Gvir will serve as security minister, with authority over police, while Smotrich’s pro-settler party will have control over planning in the West Bank, giving it wide powers over the lives of Palestinians and opening the door to an expansion of Israeli settlements.

Ben-Gvir also wants to take greater direct control over the police with legislation that would give him direct authority over policy matters normally decided by the police commissioner.

At the same time, Aryeh Deri, head of the religious Shas party, is bidding to become finance minister, despite a conviction for tax fraud. He would take over the ministry for two years under a shared arrangement with Smotrich, who would serve for the first two years of the government’s term.

Netanayhu has said he will ultimately set Israeli policy and has pledged to govern in the interest of all citizens in Israel. The veteran leader, who returns after serving a record 15 years in top office, is on trial for corruption charges he denies.