Likud’s Muscle and Netanyahu’s Sting: The Political Nightmare of the ‘Bulldozer’

Everyone in Likud knew the trap was set, but Gideon Saar walked straight into it like a recruit on his first day. Benjamin Netanyahu got what he wanted, Naftali Bennett waited in the corner with a knife between his teeth, and the court closed the book on the whole sordid affair. What began as a calculated political manoeuvre has descended into a nightmare of infighting that exposes the deep fractures within Israel’s ruling coalition and Netanyahu’s increasingly desperate grip on power.

The episode reveals a familiar pattern in Israeli politics: public declarations of unity masking private vendettas, backroom deals unravelling in spectacular fashion, and ambitious politicians discovering too late that they have underestimated their rivals. The Likud party, long dominated by Netanyahu’s iron control, has become a battleground where senior figures circle one another warily, each nursing grievances and harbouring ambitions to succeed the Prime Minister.

What makes this moment particularly significant is the timing. As Netanyahu faces multiple legal challenges and the war in Gaza continues to dominate the political landscape, his ability to maintain discipline within his own party is crumbling. The incident serves as a reminder that Israeli coalition politics operate in a perpetual state of fragility, where yesterday’s allies become today’s enemies and where no agreement is ever truly final.

For ordinary Israelis watching from the sidelines, the spectacle of senior political figures engaged in what amounts to personal warfare offers little reassurance. The energy expended on internal party struggles is energy not devoted to the serious challenges facing the country. Whether Netanyahu can successfully weather this latest storm, or whether it signals the beginning of the end of his political dominance, remains to be seen.

Source: Maariv — Original article in Hebrew.