A new Channel 12 poll reveals that nearly half of Israelis (49%) believe Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is acting out of political interests six months into the war in Gaza. Meanwhile, his main opponent, National Unity chair Benny Gantz, is losing his lead over Netanyahu amid growing frustration with the government’s handling of the war and its failure to secure the release of over 100 hostages still in Gaza.
Only 39% of respondents believe the government is doing enough to bring back the hostages, while 56% say no. The poll shows Gantz’s National Union party leading with 32 seats, followed by Netanyahu’s Likud party with 19 seats, and Opposition Leader Yair Lapid’s Yesh Atid party with 15 seats.
The poll also indicates that Netanyahu’s bloc would win 47 seats if elections were held today, while his opponents would secure 68 seats.
Amid tensions on the northern border with Lebanon, 46% of respondents support a military campaign against Hezbollah, while 37% prefer a diplomatic solution.
The gap between Gantz and Netanyahu has narrowed significantly, with 35% of Israelis supporting Gantz and 29% supporting Netanyahu, a significant drop from the 18% lead Gantz had two months ago.
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3 Responses
1. If only half of Israelis think Bibi is motivated by politics, that suggests the other half thinks he is acting randomly. What else could be motivating him.
2. Leaders who lose wars pay a price in Israel, as elsewhere (e.g. Golda Meir and the socialists in 1973). The defeat in Lebanon derailed Likud for a generation. In democracies, the best for a politician to finally retire is to lose a war (cf: Lord North after the American Revolution, Jefferson Davis for the Civil War, Neville Chamberlain for presiding over one of the most disastrous few week in British military history, etc. If Netanyahu has sense, he needs to retire ASAP, perhaps cutting a good deal on the way out, since given American opposition to an Israeli victory there isn’t much he can do.
That’s because nearly half of Israelis have their jeans painted on too tight, and that’s how many drink the cool aid of Haaretz
״פַּלְגֵי מַיִם לֶב מֶלֶךְ בְּיַד ה׳״