Author: Eitan Tzelgov
Affiliation: The Conversation
Organization/Publisher: The Conversation
Date/Place: March 16, 2020/ U.K.
Type of Literature: Policy Analysis
Word Count: 1290
Keywords: One-State solution, Two-States Solution, Palestine, Israel, Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Brief:
After losing his Likud party’s parliamentary majority, Netanyahu is expected to go to trial in May for many accusations including corruption, accepting bribes and breach of trust. Author Eitan Tzelgov indicates it’s not clear whether the Netanyahu era is over, since the anti-Netanyahu majority in Israel’s parliament is fractured. After the third election in a year, the author identifies that in order to form a coalition in the Knesset, Benny Gantz—the leader of the Blue and White list – needs to secure support from the Joint List – an alliance of Arab-majority political parties. Accordingly, Gantz has a very challenging task, which will have consequences on the future of Israeli “democracy.” Tzelgov claims that the democratic norms and institutions in Israel have proven to be resilient; however, if the opposition parties fail to form a government and Netanyahu stays in power, there will be more attacks on democratic institutions and norms in Israel. The author concludes that this might not be the end of democracy in the land, but most probably will weaken it.
By: Fadi Zatari, CIGA Senior Research Associat