Israel's Opposition Takes Harder Line on Iran Than Netanyahu
Nour Odeh, Al Jazeera English
With Israel's October 27 election approaching, Iran has become a central campaign issue. Opposition leaders — including Gadi Eisenkot, Yair Lapid and Naftali Bennett — are accusing Prime Minister Netanyahu of being too soft on Tehran, even as they warn against pre-election military escalation.
In February, when Israel and the United States launched a large-scale military campaign against Iran, the Israeli government received overwhelming support from the country's Jewish public. Opposition parties also stood behind the military and backed the bold move. Hostility toward the Tehran government is a point of consensus among mainstream Zionist parties.
By June, Israel's role in the confrontation came to an abrupt halt after US President Donald Trump announced that Iran and Israel had agreed to stop attacking each other. That announcement — and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's decision to comply — did not sit well with Israeli public opinion. According to the Israel Democracy Institute, 65-70% of Israeli Jews believe the ceasefire does not serve the country's national security interests.
As Israeli voters prepare to cast ballots in the October 27 national election, Iran remains one of the key election issues for many. Opposition parties are using Iran as an example of the failures they attribute to Netanyahu, and they vow to reset security and foreign policy if they win.
The leading figure, Gadi Eisenkot, argues the conflict is not over. While calling regime change in Iran an unrealistic goal, he accuses Netanyahu of doing too little to destroy Iran's nuclear program. At the September launch of his new party, Yashar, Eisenkot told supporters: "Ultimately, it must end with the destruction or dismantling of Iran's nuclear program — a goal not achieved despite 440 kg of highly enriched uranium, enough to quickly convert into a number of nuclear devices."
Former prime minister Yair Lapid, now opposition leader in the Knesset, accuses Netanyahu of strategic failure. Recently, at the Atlantic Council, he said toppling the Tehran government is a realistic goal and requires military escalation: "What Israel should do, or the coalition should do, is bomb every energy facility, especially on Kharg Island and elsewhere, to make sure Iran's economy is crippled. The reason is that is the only thing that can topple the regime."
Bombing civilian infrastructure was in fact something Netanyahu himself had advocated. International reaction holding that such airstrikes could constitute war crimes, along with Trump's refusal to back the plan, shelved the idea.
Former prime minister Naftali Bennett says Israel must secure military dominance across the region. For Bennett, toppling and crushing the Iranian government is essential, but not enough. The right-wing politician calls Qatar an "enemy" and describes Turkey as "the new Iran," even suggesting military confrontation with the NATO member is inevitable.
"We will build a coalition of moderate forces in the region against radical Islamic forces, against Iran, against Qatar, Turkey and all radical forces. We will act proactively to shape the region," Bennett told supporters.
Eisenkot and other opposition leaders do not rule out new confrontations. They stress their faith in the military and security establishment to assess risks and respond appropriately.
Nevertheless, opposition leaders express concern that Netanyahu could resort to military escalation before the election to tilt the balance in his favor, or even disrupt the vote — though last week the prime minister said there were no plans to attack Iran before the ballot. Those concerns grew after Netanyahu posted a video from Tel Nof air base warning that Israel's enemies could strike before the election. Some reports said Netanyahu shared intelligence on new threats from Iran with the US president.
Netanyahu was quickly criticized by opposition leaders, who accused him of "spreading fear for political purposes." Lapid publicly questioned Netanyahu's motives and accused the prime minister of using Israel's military and bases as a "backdrop" for a campaign video.
Ultimately, most Israeli opposition parties and leaders do not oppose war with Iran; many are in fact tougher than Netanyahu in their approach to Tehran. What they do not want is a new military escalation before the election.
