Could a leadership change undo Israel’s international isolation?

Israeli opposition leaders Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid have united in an attempt to defeat Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and lead Israel’s next government. But while they have lots to criticise Netanyahu about, they have few qualms with his wars in Gaza and the rest of the region. Those wars – in particular the genocide in Gaza, with more than 72,000 Palestinians killed – have made Israel more unpopular than ever internationally.

But Bennett and Lapid, both former prime ministers, seem to be betting that they will be able to rehabilitate Israel’s global reputation if they get into power in elections that must take place before the end of October. Launching the bid for government in April, Bennett, who is on Israel’s far-right politically, promised voters “an era of correction”, one where “professionals” who “think only of the good of Israel” would lead the country, rather than the division and isolation brought in by Netanyahu. Internationally, Israel finds itself more isolated than ever before. A United Nations commission has determined that Israel has in fact committed genocide in Gaza. In Europe, numerous countries, such as Spain, Norway, and the Republic of Ireland, have been outspoken in their criticism of Israel, with pressure growing from within the European Union to suspend the bloc’s trade pact with Israel. Even within the population of its most stalwart ally, the United States, polls repeatedly point to both sides of the political divide growing increasingly angry with Israel’s multiple wars and its apparent influence over US politics. And, of course, Netanyahu is wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes. “Israel is becoming more isolated,” Beth Oppenheim, a policy fellow with the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR), told Al Jazeera, pointing to polling in both the US and Europe. “For now, Trump and Netanyahu retain their public ‘bromance’, though cracks have emerged during the Iran and Lebanon wars, with the president issuing humiliating diktats to Israel on Truth Social.” In Europe too, Israel has grown increasingly isolated, with only memories of the Holocaust and more transactional concerns on trade and arms deals standing in the way of a unified response, she added. And yet, on the question of the wars in Gaza, Lebanon, and Iran, and the occupation of the Palestinians, Bennett and Lapid have few criticisms – and on occasion say that Netanyahu has not gone far enough. Rather than addressing the tens of thousands of people that Israel has killed in Gaza since 2023 or the dire humanitarian situation forced upon the enclave’s survivors, last year Bennett framed the Palestinian group Hamas as being inherently embedded in Gaza’s remaining civilian infrastructure, thereby justifying Israel’s continued attacks. Analysts have suggested that the Bennett-Lapid alliance will offer little in terms of security policy that is different from that of Netanyahu [File: Khames Alrefi/Anadolu Agency] “Essentially, they’re just relying on the assumption it’s not Israel that is hated around the world, but Netanyahu,” Alon Pinkas, a former Israeli ambassador and consul general in New York, told Al Jazeera, “which is fine, but that’s not what they’re going to be judged on.

Key points

• But Bennett and Lapid, both former prime ministers, seem to be betting that they will be able to rehabilitate Israel’s global reputation if they get into power in elections that must take place bef…
• Launching the bid for government in April, Bennett, who is on Israel’s far-right politically, promised voters “an era of correction”, one where “professionals” who “think only of the good of Israel…
• Internationally, Israel finds itself more isolated than ever before.
• A United Nations commission has determined that Israel has in fact committed genocide in Gaza.
• In Europe, numerous countries, such as Spain, Norway, and the Republic of Ireland, have been outspoken in their criticism of Israel, with pressure growing from within the European Union to suspend…