Israeli President Isaac Herzog said that the whole world is concerned about the far-right views of Itamar Ben-Gvir, who seems set to become a minister in Binyamin Netanyahu's new coalition government, The Guardian reported.

He said this, thinking the microphone was off, as he was consulting with an ultra-Orthodox political party about the next government, which is expected to be led by former Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu after his right-wing alliance won the election last week.

“You have a partner who the entire world around us is worried about. I have also said this to him. This is really not for publication. I don’t want to cause problems,” Herzog said on a live mic about Ben-Gvir at the end of the meeting. “You are going to have a problem with the Temple Mount. That is a critical issue,” Herzog said, referring to a Jerusalem holy site known to Muslims as the al-Aqsa mosque compound.

Ben-Gvir, convicted in 2007 of racist incitement against Arabs and support for a group that Israel and the United States consider a terrorist organization, supports Jewish prayer at the holy complex, challenging the historical status quo.

Herzog's office later said the president discussed these concerns directly with Ben-Gvir.