Netanyahu Emerges as Biggest Loser in Israeli Parliamentary Elections
Israel’s public broadcasting corporation has reported that Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister, has emerged as the biggest loser in yesterday’s parliamentary elections. According to preliminary results, the possibility of forming a national unity government based on the current composition of the Knesset seems nearly impossible. Yaron Abraham, an analyst of Israeli internal affairs, emphasized that reaching an agreement to form a unity government is now more difficult than ever. Meanwhile, Gadi Eisenkot, leader of the Yesh Atid party, strongly rejected participation in a Netanyahu-led cabinet and confirmed ongoing disputes within the current coalition. The large turnout of Palestinians residing in the occupied territories in these elections has intensified internal political tensions within the ruling party. Netanyahu has blamed the extremist Israeli minister Itamar Ben Gvir, accusing his policies of significantly increasing Palestinian votes, which has led to disputes within the coalition. On the other hand, Tali Gottlieb, a member of the Israeli Knesset, sharply criticized Palestinian participation, describing their use of the ballot boxes as a means to launch attacks against Jews. This comes while more than one and a half million Palestinians living in the West Bank and occupied East Jerusalem are denied the right to participate in these elections, an action that once again highlights the restrictions imposed by Israel on the political rights of Palestinians.
