Netanyahu’s Snub of Trump Over Gaza is Posturing Linked to Looming Elections
President Donald Trump listens to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as he speaks at the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, Monday, Oct. 13, 2025 in Jerusalem.
“It’s not a secret that the Likud Party is facing decreasing support,” even among its traditional voters, Avi Melamed, an Israel-based strategic intelligence analyst, told Sputnik – commenting Netanyahu’s rejection of Trump’s Gaza peace plan.“We have to remember that Mr. Netanyahu was marking the slogan of ultimate victory” in Gaza – including “ending” Hamas’s rule and “eliminating” the group. “Those slogans have not met the reality, let’s put it this way,” Melamed said.On top of that, Trump’s attempts to publicly pressure the Israeli prime minister to bend to his will “does not contribute to Mr. Netanyahu’s image” as he sees it, according to the analyst.“So I think that from Mr. Netanyahu’s perspective, this is some kind of mechanism or way to restore his public image, and I think it has a lot to do with the issue of [October’s] upcoming elections.”
WorldIsrael Rejects 15-Point Board of Peace Plan for Gaza – NetanyahuYesterday, 12:09 GMT“In about two months from now we could have a totally different political structure and map in Israel, very likely we’re going to have a new government that will be quite different from the current one,” Melamed stressed. “We are heading toward elections, midterms in the US, we are looking at the ongoing crisis with Iran – there are many moving parts.”The analyst doesn’t rule out that Washington could press Tel Aviv into submission on Gaza, saying there have been situations in the past “that basically indicated very clearly that at the end of the day if President Trump insists about something, Netanyahu will be complying with that.”Gaza peace is itself a delicate chicken vs egg situation, Melamed believes, saying the crux of the dispute is Israel’s demand that Hamas disarm before it withdraws, and Hamas’s insistence that Israel withdraw first.
WorldHamas Says Israel Must Halt Gaza Strikes to Implement Trump’s Peace Plan31 July, 16:20 GMT
