'Netanyahu has never looked weaker, yet …'

Conflicts Forum’s compilation of pieces from leading Israeli political & security commentators (predominantly translated from Hebrew), 17 August 2026

Ben Caspit: ‘Netanyahu has never looked weaker, yet …’ /

Ronen Bergman: ‘Dubious doomsday scenarios are flooding Israeli media. It’s not hard to guess who this serves’ /

Danny Citrinowicz: ‘War cannot be the sole purpose of the State of Israel’ /

Yossi Verter: Netanyahu wants to “refresh” Likud’s election slate with non-Mizrahi, “gentle European” Likudniks

Professor Omer Bartov: ‘A Terrifying New Era — Israel has normalised Genocide and is unlikely to face a reckoning for its actions’

[These compilations are drawn from analysis & commentary by leading Israeli political & security commentators, predominantly translated from Hebrew sources — as reports published in Hebrew often provide a different window on Israeli internal discourse. Minor edits have been made for clarity during translation].

CONSEQUENTIAL OBSERVATIONS —

‘Netanyahu has never looked weaker, yet …’ (Ben Caspit, Ma’ariv):

If the poll landscape is accurate, the ‘Change’ camp will be able to form a government on 28 October. Admittedly, there is still plenty of time and everything could change and be turned on its head, but at the moment the picture is optimistic. The trend in the polls is positive, the messages are catchy, and the candidates are experienced and full of energy. On the other side, with Netanyahu, there is desolation and helplessness … Therefore, as things stand, the main threat to the Change Bloc’s ability to form a government is the Change Bloc itself. The fact that there are differences between the parties in the bloc is legitimate and even desirable … [but] the fact that there is no clear and definitive agreement that the bloc will rally around the leader of the largest party is a strategic blunder. It could lead to one of the most spectacular and devastating own goals ever scored here. If that happens, it will be unforgivable …