Our Fathom Highlight this week features five pieces on next week’s Israeli election. Tal Schneider discusses key issues related to the upcoming poll including whether Netanyahu will form a big tent government with Benny Gantz, whether Avigdor Lieberman can be persuaded to serve in a Netanyahu-led government and why Israeli electoral campaigns always revolve around security issues. Avi Weiss discusses the strengths and weaknesses of Israel’s economy, argues that its greatest growth potential lies in the Arab community, and warns that the economic potential of Israeli high-tech is being squandered. In a further reply to Revital Amiran, Yisrael Medad argues that the Left is now viewed, in the eyes of the majority of the public, as outside the Jewish political consensus in Israel. Hamutal Gouri argues from a feminist perspective for an awakening of the Israeli public which she reproaches as too willing to vote against its own political interests. In addition, social scientist Doron Matza argues that Benjamin Netanyahu’s broadly pragmatic diplomatic, security and economic policies enjoy widespread consensus, and this ‘paradigm’ will continue for the foreseeable future, regardless of who wins the election.

Our Image of the Week is Blue and White Chair Benny Gantz speaking with Channel 12 anchor Danny Kushmaro during the conference of the Israeli Television News Company, Tel Aviv, 5 September 2019.

Our Voice of the Week is Alex Joffe, Asaf Romirowsky, Gerald Steinberg, Einat Wilf, Arnon Groiss, Daniel Pipes and Eitan Dangot at the Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies and Middle East Forum joint conference entitled ‘Reforming UNRWA’, 18 March 2018.

IsraelVotes2019 (2) | ‘The Likud understand that they will have to approach Gantz’: an interview with Tal Schneider

by Tal Schneider