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Israeli politics

Former prime minister and B'Yachad party chairman Naftali Bennett speaks at a press conference in Tel Aviv, October 11, 2026. (Miriam Alster/Flash90)
October 22, 2026, 12:27 am
Bennett’s security doubled as he faces threats, attack plots before election
Enhanced security detail makes ex-PM’s protection equivalent to that of defense minister; Yisrael Beytenu submits formal complaint after Liberman hit with death threats
By Ariela Karmel
Ofer Winter (left) at the launch of his People of Israel party, in Jerusalem, August 25, 2026; Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrives to vote at the Likud primary in Jerusalem on August 17, 2026. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
October 21, 2026, 8:52 pm
Winter says may have erred pledging support for PM; Smotrich offers him minister role to quit
People of Israel chair clarifies he’s not planning to cross the aisle; ramping up pressure, Netanyahu shares call by bereaved families for Winter to drop out
By Ariela Karmel and Stav Levaton
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) in Jerusalem, October 11, 2026, and Charedi Public chair Moti Leitner in Beit Shemesh, August 23, 2026. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
October 21, 2026, 6:26 pm
PM said to meet head of Charedi Public party in last-ditch effort to get him to quit race
Netanyahu reportedly tried to entice Moti Leitner to drop out, offering to appoint him as a special adviser for ultra-Orthodox affairs in next government
By ToI Staff
Ofer Winter (left) at the launch of his People of Israel party, in Jerusalem, August 25, 2026; Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrives to vote at the Likud primary in Jerusalem on August 17, 2026. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
October 20, 2026, 10:51 pm
Netanyahu, Smotrich meet Winter’s rabbi to pressure him to quit race; he refuses
People of Israel party head vows to go all the way, receives endorsement from father of slain hostage Shani Louk minutes after IDF says Gaza strike killed her last kidnapper
By Ariela Karmel and Stav Levaton
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu with National Security Advisor Tzachi Hanegbi at a press conference at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem, on September 28, 2023 (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
October 20, 2026, 11:42 am
Ex-Netanyahu ally Hanegbi, longtime Likud stalwart, announces he’s voting for Liberman
Former national security adviser says he is breaking with voting habits of almost 50 years to cast ballot for Yisrael Beytenu; laments ‘messianic’ and ‘racist’ voices in PM’s bloc
By ToI Staff
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir. (Sharon Leibel/Flash90, Avshalom Sassoni/FLASH90)
October 15, 2026, 11:10 pm
PM says Ben Gvir can’t be defense or police minister after election, angering Otzma Yehudit
Netanyahu says portfolios sought by far-right politician must stay with Likud; Ben Gvir says premier planning a coalition with Eisenkot: ‘The cat’s out of the bag’
By Ariela Karmel
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (L) arriving for court in Jerusalem, and Yashar party chair Gadi Eisenkot visiting the Nova music festival site. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90, Yonatan Sindel/Flash90)
October 15, 2026, 9:19 pm
ToI poll: Eisenkot’s party opens up big lead on Netanyahu’s, but both blocs short of majority
Zman Yisrael survey gives Jewish-led opposition bloc 54-49 lead, with Eisenkot’s Yashar 6 seats ahead of Likud; Channel 13 poll gives parties loyal to PM a one-seat edge
By ToI Staff
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (center), Justice Minister Yariv Levin (left), and Defense Minister Israel Katz (right), with ultra-Orthodox MKs Yitzchak Goldknopf, Moshe Gafni and Meir Porush behind them, seen in the Knesset shortly before the vote on a law banning arrests of ultra-Orthodox draft dodgers and legitimizing ongoing mass ultra-Orthodox non-enlistment, July 14, 2026. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
October 15, 2026, 12:40 am
Netanyahu said worried Gur Hasidim won’t vote as allies push small parties to drop out
Community with estimated 30,000 voters reportedly angry over failure to pass draft exemptions; PM and his partners turn up heat on People of Israel, Haredi Public parties over fear they’ll waste votes
By ToI Staff, Nava Freiberg and Ariela Karmel
A worker weighs newly printed ballot papers, at a printing factory, ahead of the October 27 Israeli legislative election in Kiryat Gat, southern Israel, on October 8, 2026. (Jack Guez/AFP))
October 14, 2026, 6:20 pm
Israelis living abroad fly back to vote in what they believe is a pivotal election
Influx of voters from overseas alarms Netanyahu’s bloc, with tens of thousands having left during his current term; briefly returning citizens say vote ‘crucial’ for Israel’s future
By AFP
Former prime minister and B'Yachad party chairman Naftali Bennett speaks at a press conference in Tel Aviv, October 11, 2026. (Miriam Alster/Flash90)
October 12, 2026, 2:51 am
Bennett suggests Netanyahu could sit in future government, backtracks, says he wasn’t serious
In fresh round of bloc infighting, Eisenkot, Golan, Liberman categorically reject possibility of sitting in coalition with Likud leader, while Gantz is lone voice of support
By Shira Silkoff and Ariela Karmel
A convoy of supporters of the Islamist Ra'am party in southern Israel (L), and one of the alleged members of the convoy bound, on October 7, 2026. (X/Moshe Feiglin, X/Itamar Ben Gvir)
October 8, 2026, 6:13 am
Ben Gvir touts arrests of Ra’am biker convoy, claims scenes reminiscent of Oct. 7
Far-right minister posts photo of bound motorcyclist, doesn’t say how many arrested or what convoy was doing illegally; Feiglin says the mostly Arab party has same ideology, flag as Hamas
By Noam Lehmann
An election poster for Prime Minsiter Benjamin Netanyahu that reads, 'We won't surrender,' in Tel Aviv, October 6, 2026. (Miriam Alster/FLASH90)
October 8, 2026, 2:35 am
Three years after Oct. 7 reshaped Israel, its political map is much the same
Voters’ beliefs have been cemented by war, with those against Netanyahu blaming him for massacre, while loyalists view reports that he was given prior warnings of attack as part of effort to topple him
By Ruth Eglash
Jacob Bardugo, one of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's personally selected candidates for Likud's slate in the October 27, 2026, general elections, at an event in Jerusalem where Netanyahu presented the candidates, September 8, 2026. (Chaim Goldberg/Flash90)
October 5, 2026, 8:36 am
Placed on Likud’s slate, pro-Netanyahu pundit Jacob Bardugo amps up political clout to 11
Doggedly loyal Channel 14 firebrand long operated inside the PM’s political orbit from behind the scenes, but is now set to assume real influence with the No. 11 slot on Likud’s electoral slate
By Stav Levaton
A man walks past a television channel advertisement featuring Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, and his main rival, opposition candidate Gadi Eisenkot, ahead of Israel’s general election, in Ramat Gan, September 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
September 30, 2026, 5:03 am
‘It’s bad’: In a polarized Israel, the likeliest election result is more uncertainty
This may be Israel’s most consequential election ever. But neither side has a clear path to victory and they’re both plagued by infighting. On Oct. 27, don’t expect a reckoning
By Ben Sales
A television channel advertisement featuring Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, and his main election rival Gadi Eisenkot ahead of the Knesset election, in Ramat Gan, September 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
September 25, 2026, 12:46 am
Netanyahu’s coalition and rival ‘change bloc’ draw level in latest ToI poll
Zionist anti-Netanyahu parties should agree on candidate for premier, say 67% of respondents who back them; PM bloc’s edge in last week’s Channel 13 poll, touted by Trump, disappears
By ToI Staff
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