October 2, 2026
JERUSALEM (AP) — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was rushed to the hospital early Sunday for an emergency implantation of a heart pacemaker. A physician at the Sheba Medical Center said later that the procedure went well and Netanyahu felt fine.
In announcing the hospitalization, Netanyahu's office said that he would be sedated and that a top deputy, Justice Minister Yariv Levin, would stand in for him while he underwent the procedure. In a brief video statement before the implantation, Netanyahu said he “feels excellent” and planned to push forward with the judicial overhaul as soon as he was released.
Netanyahu's announcement, issued well after midnight, came a week after he was hospitalized at Sheba for what was described as dehydration.
Netanyahu, 73, keeps a busy schedule and his office says he is in good health. But over the years, it has released few details or medical records. On July 15, he was rushed to Sheba with dizziness. He later said he had been out in the hot sun and had not drunk enough water.
His return for the pacemaker procedure indicated his health troubles were more serious than initially indicated. In the video, Netanyahu said that he was outfitted with a monitor after last week's hospitalization and that when an alarm beeped late Saturday, it meant he required a pacemaker right away.
“I feel excellent, but I listen to my doctors,” he said.
Professor Roy Beinart, senior physician and director at the Davidai Arrhythmia Center at Sheba's Heart Institute, said in a video that Netanyahu was called in to get the pacemaker because he experienced “a temporary arrhythmia,” or irregular heartbeat, Saturday evening.
"The implantation went smoothly, without any complications. He is not in a life-threatening condition. He feels great and is returning to his daily routine,” Beinart said.
A pacemaker is used when a patient’s heart beats too slowly, which can cause fainting spells, according to the National Institutes of Health. It can also be used to treat heart failure. By sending electrical pulses to the heart, the device keeps a person’s heartbeat at a normal rhythm. Patients with pacemakers often return to regular activities within a few days, according to NIH.
The procedure normally involves a doctor inserting the pacemaker near the collarbone, according to Mayo Clinic. A hospital stay of at least a day is usually required.
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