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Wednesday, July 15, 2026
Transportation Ministry said discussing ways to thwart arrival of anti-Netanyahu voters ahead of Oct. election
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Senior officials in Likud Transportation Minister Miri Regev’s office are reportedly discussing ways to limit the number of flights coming into Ben Gurion Airport in the days leading up to the October 27 elections in order to thwart the arrival of voters for parties opposed to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The effort comes against the backdrop of several initiatives working to help fly Israelis in for the election. The initiatives are nonpartisan, but Regev’s associates believe that those seeking to take advantage of the opportunity are overwhelmingly opposed to Netanyahu and could number in the tens of thousands.
The politically motivated conversations have disturbed Transportation Ministry bureaucrats, a source closely familiar with the matter tells Haaretz.
Ideas discussed have included preventing charter flights from landing at Ben Gurion — or at least limited the number of them, two senior sources say.
Regev’s associates have also noted the continued presence of US military refueling planes at Ben Gurion Airport, which have taken parking spots away from other planes.
While Israel has managed to limit the number of planes to 20, they may well still be parked at Ben Gurion Airport in October, given that US President Donald Trump could decide to wait to authorize a major strike against Iran until after the November 3 midterms.
Parking spots are prioritized for Israeli airlines, followed by foreign airlines and only then charter flights, which are expected to be the main method of transportation used by those seeking to help Israelis fly back for the election. Those flights are not slated to be free, though.
The Transportation Ministry did not respond to Haaretz’s request for comment on the matter.
The Times of Israel Community.