Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu underwent successful surgery for a hernia late Sunday following a meeting of the war cabinet. Netanyahu, 74, was put under full anesthesia during the operation at Hadassah Hospital Ein Kerem in Jerusalem, leaving Justice Minister Yariv Levin in charge of the country for several hours.Doctors and Netanyahu’s office said in a statement at around 1:30 a.m. that the surgery had gone as planned and had been a success.
Doctors discovered the hernia on Saturday during a routine checkup, and after consultations the decision was made for the premier to undergo surgery after completing his daily schedule, his office said. Thousands of Israelis demonstrated in Jerusalem on Sunday evening to call for Netanyahu's resignation and the release of Israeli hostages held in Gaza. The war in Gaza was sparked by Hamas's attack on Israel on October 7 that resulted in about 1,160 deaths in Israel, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures. Israel's retaliatory campaign has so far killed at least 32,782 people, mostly women and children, the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said Sunday. Hernias typically result from a combination of muscle weakness and strain. Many hernias occur in the abdomen between your chest and hips, but they can also appear in the upper thigh and groin areas.