Israelis entered the last 24 hours of an intense electoral season on Monday (26), while reports circulated that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu may have clashed with the Israeli armed forces over the possibility of initiating an escalation with Iran immediately before the elections.
Tensions rose after reports that Netanyahu and the chief of the military staff clashed over an instruction from the prime minister to carry out an “action” that the Army feared could rekindle the conflict with Iran. Netanyahu’s office denied the report, initially published by Israel Channel 12, calling it “fake news.” Defense Minister Israel Katz also denied the report.
Candidates from the opposition in Israel criticized the reports, accusing Netanyahu of putting regional stability at risk to preserve himself politically. Netanyahu’s main rival, former Chief of Staff Gadi Eisenkot, warned Netanyahu not to “dare place your own political interests above the security of the state.”
Avigdor Lieberman, leader of the hardline Yisrael Beytenu party, which is part of the opposition bloc, sent a letter to Israel’s attorney-general demanding a criminal investigation into possible treason, citing “the attempts” by Netanyahu to “drag Israel into a war on the eve of the elections, including a willingness to sacrifice Israeli soldiers for fear of losing the election.”
Although Israelis are approaching the vote with high anticipation, viewing it as one of the most crucial in years, people across the Middle East do not expect dramatic changes, regardless of the winner. Both Netanyahu and his main rivals have similar approaches to Israel’s regional security, both in Gaza and with regard to Iran.
The Iran also watched the last-minute campaign cautiously. “For us, it makes no difference who ultimately takes command of a regime whose history shows that it has brought our region nothing but violence and bloodshed,” said Esmail Baghaei, spokesman for Iran’s Foreign Ministry, at his weekly press briefing on Monday. Source: Associated Press.
*Content translated with the aid of Artificial Intelligence, reviewed and edited by the Broadcast Desk, Grupo Estado’s real-time news system
