Israel Prime Minister
Benjamin Netanyahu is facing a crucial test of his political future in Tuesday's election, with voters weighing his leadership following the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, attacks, successive wars in Gaza and with Iran, and Israel's growing international isolation, news agency Reuters reported.
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Reuters → face → Iran
Despite the mounting challenges, Netanyahu, Israel's longest-serving leader with 19 years in office, remains a formidable political survivor.
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Netanyahu → mount → office
With nationalist politics firmly entrenched and the country's fragmented electoral system making coalition-building decisive, he could still emerge best placed to form the next government.
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he → entrench → government
Opinion polls point to a close contest between Netanyahu's Likud party and its right-wing allies and a rival alliance led by Gadi Eisenkot, a former military chief of staff and security hawk who has attracted support from both right-wing and centrist voters.
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who → point → voters
Netanyahu has made his wartime leadership and close relationship with US President
Donald Trump central to his campaign.
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leadership → make → campaign
Trump has endorsed the Israeli leader, with the two countries joining forces in the war against Iran.
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countries → endorse → Iran
On Sunday, Netanyahu said Trump was prepared to act again to “finally” remove the Iranian threat, but only if he remained in power.
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he → say → power
Eisenkot, however, accused the prime minister of "relying on a campaign of fear-mongering, lies and threats," adding that Trump would work "in full cooperation with any leader chosen by the people."
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Trump → accuse → people
Netanyahu may once again need the support of far-right leaders Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich to secure a governing majority.
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Netanyahu → need → majority
Both have faced sanctions from some Western countries over allegations of inciting violence against Palestinians.
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Both → face → Palestinians
Meanwhile, Ben-Gvir's Jewish Power party has gained ground in opinion polls.
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party → gain → polls
Neither Netanyahu nor Eisenkot has a clear route to power.
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Netanyahu → have → power
If neither manages to assemble a coalition in Israel's 120-member parliament, Netanyahu could remain in office as caretaker prime minister until another election is held next year.
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election → manage → minister
Polling stations are scheduled to remain open from 7 am to 10 pm (0500 to 2000 GMT).
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stations → schedule → GMT
The October 7 reckoning
The election comes after one of the most turbulent periods in Israel's history since its establishment in 1948.
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election → come → 1948
The trauma of the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attacks, Israel's subsequent military offensive in Gaza and deep divisions over Netanyahu's right-wing government have dominated the country's political landscape.
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trauma → lead → landscape
For many of Netanyahu's opponents, the vote is also a referendum on accountability for the security failures that preceded October 7, Israel's deadliest day.
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that → precede → October
Mali Hajaj, an education ministry employee who supports Eisenkot, said a national inquiry into the attacks was essential for the country to begin healing.
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country → support → attacks
"the most important thing is the establishment of a national inquiry because that's where our healing will come from," she said.
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she → come → where
Lisa Tortor, another voter opposed to Netanyahu, said she hoped he would leave office and a new government would begin repairing the damage to Israel's international standing and the wider Jewish community.
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government → oppose → standing
She said she hoped Netanyahu would go and "they can form a new government and do some of the repairing of the damage that Bibi has done for Jews all over the world and for Israel, and Israel's image."
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Bibi → say → Israel
Not all voters, however, believe the prime minister should be held responsible for the October 7 attacks.
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minister → believe → attacks
Nof Gabay, an 18-year-old Likud supporter, dismissed that criticism and backed Netanyahu's leadership during the war.
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Gabay → dismiss → war
Gabay called him "the right man for the state of Israel" and said, "Netanyahu managed the war in the best possible way."
Netanyahu's wartime record under scrutiny
The election campaign has unfolded against the backdrop of years of military conflict that have reshaped Israel's security and diplomatic position.
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that → call → security
After the October 7 attacks, in which Hamas-led militants killed 1,200 people and took another 251 hostage, Israel launched a military offensive that devastated much of Gaza.
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that → lead → Gaza
Gaza health authorities say Israeli attacks have killed 74,000 people.
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attacks → say → people
Israel also dealt major blows to Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon and exchanged strikes with Iran before launching a 12-day aerial campaign against Iranian nuclear sites in 2025.
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Israel → deal → 2025
The conflict escalated further this year with a joint US-Israeli war against Iran.
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conflict → escalate → Iran
Netanyahu has presented his handling of these conflicts as evidence of his leadership and ability to confront Israel's security threats.
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Netanyahu → present → threats
His alliance with Trump has also become a key part of his pitch to voters, particularly as tensions with Iran remain central to the campaign.
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tensions → become → campaign
Eisenkot, meanwhile, has argued that Israel's next government must ensure Iran does not acquire a military nuclear capability.
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Iran → argue → capability
He has said this could be achieved through military action or an "arrangement", including a diplomatic solution backed by the United States.
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this → say → States
The competing positions underline how security policy remains central to the election, even as voters grapple with questions about accountability, the future of the Gaza conflict and Israel's standing abroad.
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voters → compete → conflict
Coalition arithmetic could decide the outcome
Even if Eisenkot's alliance makes gains, forming a government could prove difficult.
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forming → decide → government
Like nearly all Jewish-led parties in Israel, his camp opposes the two-state solution that has underpinned decades of peace negotiations with the Palestinians.
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that → lead → Palestinians
Eisenkot has, however, criticised violence by Jewish settlers against Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied West Bank.
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Eisenkot → criticise → Bank
Such violence has surged since 2023, straining Israel's ties with Western countries.
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violence → surge → countries
He has also opposed Netanyahu's far-right coalition partners, Ben-Gvir and Smotrich.
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He → oppose → partners
Meanwhile, dissatisfaction with Netanyahu has prompted some voters in traditional Likud strongholds to campaign against him.
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dissatisfaction → prompt → him
Others have turned away from the prime minister as he continues to fight corruption charges in a long-running criminal trial, which he denies.
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he → turn → which
…and 9 more, not listed.
The Aporia
