Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has suffered a hernia and will undergo surgery, the Prime Minister's Office said in a statement Sunday.
According to the statement, a routine check Saturday night showed Prime Minister Netanyahu has a hernia and was scheduled to undergo surgery Sunday night at Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem under general anesthesia. Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister and Justice Minister Yariv Levin will serve as acting prime minister.
Sources close to Netanyahu noted that he did not experience any pain. Ynet has learned that the examination was conducted by the prime minister's personal physician Dr. Zvi Herman Berkowitz after Netanyahu reported discomfort in his abdomen.
Ministers who attended the Cabinet meeting Sunday morning reported that Netanyahu appeared "completely fine" to them, and they did not notice anything unusual about him.
The surgery, to be performed by Prof. Alon Pikarski, the head of the surgical department at Hadassah Ein Kerem in Jerusalem, entails at least one day of recovery.
Until the surgery, Netanyahu will maintain his scheduled commitments. Throughout the day, he and his wife Sara met in his Jerusalem office with families of abducted female soldiers.
Additionally, on Sunday, he is expected to partake in a War Cabinet discussion. Shortly after the surgery announcement, Netanyahu's office revealed plans for a press conference to be held on Sunday evening.
At 74, Netanyahu underwent a similar surgery in August 2013. A hernia, also referred to as a rupture, bulge or herniation, occurs when an organ pushes through the abdominal wall.
Between 5%-10% of the population suffer from inguinal hernias. The lifetime risk of developing an inguinal hernia for men is about 25%, while for women, the risk is less than 5%. The only treatment for repairing a hernia is surgery, making it one of the most common surgical procedures.