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On Dec. 8, 2023, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends the funeral of a 25-year-old Israeli soldier who was killed in Gaza. Alexi J. Rosenfeld/Getty Images

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces a dilemma: Free the hostages or continue the war in Gaza?

A scholar of Israeli politics explains why Israelis are increasingly turning against Netanyahu and his promise that Israel can quickly defeat Hamas and bring Israeli hostages home.
The Israeli Supreme Court assembled in September 2023 to hear arguments to strike down a controversial judicial overhaul limiting the power of the court to review and overturn government decisions. Debbie Hill/Pool/AFP viaGetty Images

Israel’s highest court protects its power to curb government extremism − 3 essential reads

Israel’s highest court has struck down the government’s law limiting its power. Three scholars look at why the law was proposed, what it aimed to do and who supported – and opposed – it.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is under fire now for his government’s failure to anticipate the Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023. Emmanuel Dunand/AFP via Getty Images)

Despite his government’s failure to anticipate Hamas’ deadly attack, don’t count Netanyahu out politically

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has presided over disasters before – and remained in power. But is the intelligence failure preceding the Hamas attack so big that this time he won’t?
Former U.S. president Donald Trump gives thumbs up as he watches during the first round of the LIV Golf Tournament at Trump National Golf Club in Sterling, Va. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

From Donald Trump to Danielle Smith: 4 ways populists are jeopardizing democracy

It will take a lot of strategic ingenuity to fight the rise of populism. And it will get harder to do so as politicians rig the game with rules designed to reduce voting.
A member of Israel’s military reserves takes part in a protest on March 16, 2023 in Bnei Brak, a city east of Tel Aviv. Photo by Eyal Warshavsky/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

Israel’s military reservists are joining protests – potentially transforming a political crisis into a security crisis

Israel’s leader, Benjamin Netanyahu, has fired the country’s defense minister. That deepened the country’s crisis over proposed judicial reforms that even military reservists have protested.
Opposition deputies protest as the first stage of controversial judicial reform is approved by the Knesset Law Committee on Feb. 13, 2023. Photo by Israeli Parliament (Knesset) / Handout/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images

Israel enters a dangerous period – public protests swell over Netanyahu’s plan to limit the power of the Israeli Supreme Court

Huge pro-democracy demonstrations in Israel have taken place for almost two months in protest of new rules for the Supreme Court that Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-wing government is rushing into law.
Benjamin Netanyahu sits in the Knesset before parliament voted June 13, 2021, in Jerusalem to approve the new government that doesn’t include him, Amir Levy/Getty Images

It wasn’t just politics that led to Netanyahu’s ouster – it was fear of his demagoguery

Benjamin Netanyahu wasn’t ousted just for typical political reasons, such as other politicians’ ambitions or grievances. He was thrown out because he was seen as a threat to democracy.
Ultra orthodox Jews watch Rabbi Israel Hager vote in Bnei Brak, Israel, Sept. 17, 2019. AP/Oded Balilty

The 4 big questions that the next Israeli government will decide

The winner of Tuesday’s Israeli election must form a government and tackle four problems that will shape the future of the country and the relations among its citizens and Palestinian non-citizens.
Iraeli Arab Knesset member Jamal Zahalka is removed after protesting the bill’s passage. AP/Olivier Fitoussi

Israel’s new nation-state law restates the obvious

Rather than transform Israel into an undemocratic ‘apartheid’ state, the new nation-state law is more likely to ensure that Israel can’t be transformed into a liberal democracy or binational state.

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