Israel’s election may end the Netanyahu era but not the ‘forever wars’

The vote, constitutionally set for this October, is shaping up as a referendum on the prime minister’s central claim to power: that only he can keep Israel safe.

Not only that, but the regime in Tehran survives – despite Netanyahu’s best efforts – with what analysts describe as a greater motivation than ever to acquire a nuclear weapon.

“Israel has never been less secure,” Israeli-American geopolitical analyst Shaiel Ben-Ephraim told This Week in Asia. “In a country obsessed with security, this is what matters.”

Nearly two-thirds of Israelis believe Netanyahu should not stand for re-election, recent opinion polls show – a damning verdict driven not only by the intelligence failure of October 7 but by the perception that he has deliberately prolonged the wars to stave off legal accountability, according to Middle East researcher Annelle Sheline.