Israeli President Herzog's hot mic moment: 'World is anxious about Ben-Gvir'

Israeli President Isaac Herzog was caught in an apparent hot mic moment after a meeting with ultra-Orthodox Shas party members. He can be heard telling Haredi lawmakers that “the entire world is anxious about” Ben-Gvir. “There’s one issue I didn’t talk about because I don’t want to shame anyone,” Herzog can be heard saying. “You’re going to have a problem with the Temple Mount. That’s a critical issue.”

Ben-Gvir has been an open supporterof Jewish prayer at the Temple Mount. However, it violates the current status quo. He has even visited the site multiple times, especially during times of heightened tensions.

“You have a partner that the whole world around us is worried about. I told him that too, between us. It’s not for publication. I don’t want to cause trouble but I think you have a responsibility.”

A Shas member then says “but he’s become more moderate, in our opinion,” and that's when the recording ends.

In response to the recording, Herzog's office said is a statement that "in the conversation, the president emphasized the responsibility placed on all elected officials".It was about “appeals made to him with concern over MK Itamar Ben Gvir’s positions on certain matters".

It also informed that the president had "an open and honest conversation" about the issue with Ben-Gvir also.

Ben-Gvir later responded to the entire situation and said that he's had "many fruitful conversations" with Herzog. "He is confident that if I speak to the world, they will understand and recognize that I am not generalizing all Arabs," Ben-Gvir said.

Earlier this week, Jordan had raised the matter of the temple with Herzog and warned Israel against changing the status quo at the holy site.

(With inputs from agencies)