Israeli minister may run for PM after Australian diamond tycoon pledges resources to success

Israel's justice Minister Ayelet Shaked has said she might eventually run for the office of prime minister of the Jewish state, after an Austrian diamond  tycoon  said he has chosen her as a candidate for the slot.

Joseph Gutnick is an Australian businessman and mining industry entrepreneur. He is also an ordained rabbi and is well known for his philanthropy in the Jewish world.

According to Israeli media, In 1996, when the incumbent Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had almost the election,  the last-minute boost form him  to win the race  came from Gutnick.

The  campaign started two days before the May 29 election, when banners went up at junctions across the country with the slogan “Netanyahu is good for the Jews.”

It was  financed by Australian billionaire Joseph Gutnick, a Chabad rabbi who made by mining diamonds in Australia’s Northern Territory.

In a recent Interview with a leading English language newspaper, the rabbi said he  has chosen his candidate to succeed Netanyahu whenever he leaves office: Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked.

Reacting to his  comments,  Shaked said: “I am very thankful to Gutnick for the compliment." 

 “Right now, we have a prime minister in Benjamin Netanyahu, and after him, [Bayit Yehudi leader] Naftali Bennett is most fit. But in the distant future, everything is open.”