Israel reelects Netanyahu, and with his return worries about tension in the region mount
Benjamin Netanyahu is once again the prime minister of Israel. He makes a comeback after winning the November elections and would be heading the Israel government with his ultra-right cabinet. He is likely to pursue policies that are sure to lead to more tension in the region. If his track record is to go by, the civil rights would suffer and diplomatic solutions to the Palestine problems would take a back seat. The reason for this is obvious. His allies include the Religious Zionism and Jewish Power parties, which oppose Palestinian statehood and any negotiations. Moreover, most of them are against Israel’s justice system, Arab minority aspirations, and LGBT rights. Ironically, parliament elected Amir Ohana, a gay but Netanyahu loyalist, as its new speaker. Netanyahu is on trial for graft charges. He was the prime minister for three years in the 1990s and from 2009 to 2021. Netanyahu made his intentions clear with the appointment of Itamar Ben-Gvir as minister for police. Gvir was convicted in 2007 of incitement against Arabs and support for a Jewish militant group, However, Netanyahu has pledged to promote tolerance and promote peace. He has stated in the parliament that he would work to end the Israeli-Arab conflict and that would be his top priority. How much he would honour his words remains to be seen. Yet another of his priorities according to him would be to build up Israel's military capacity. The biggest fallout of Netanyahu’s rule would be a steep rise in tension in Israel-Palestinian relations.
The violence in Jewish settlements is already on the rise in the West Bank, which would result in the military skirmishes. The Likud party has openly stated that it would "promote and develop settlement" on lands to which "the Jewish people have an exclusive and unassailable right". Most countries do not support it and maintain that settlements built on land captured in war are illegal occupations. In his previous term, Netanyahu advocated Israeli settlement in occupied territories and won support from Israeli settlers in that area but could not pursue it due to pressure from the US and Arab nations. He might try it it again. The worst part is that Arab lawmakers have no representatives in the new cabinet. But Netanyahu says he would be serving all Israelis. But who according to him are Israelis is anybody’s guess.
