Election campaign in Israel: "The democratization of evil"

Fania Oz-Salzberger stands in her garden, surrounded by green hills, overlooking the Israeli Mediterranean coast and picking a fragrant lemon from a tree. "Every guest gets a fruit," says the 58-year-old professor of law and daughter of the century writer Amos Oz, who died in December. She lives in Zichron Ja'akow, a small town on the southern foothills of the Carmel Mountains. It is an idyllic place. In the rest of the country this is different this spring.

Israeli scoffers say there are four seasons there: summer, strike, war and election campaign. Straight is election campaign. He will be brutal as never before. Until the 9th of April. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu hopes that he can then form a new right-wing conservative government. According to recent surveys, that's realistic.

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Election posters in Israel

"Israel is the nation-state of the Jewish people - and only by this"

Despite the numerous corruption scandals that burden him. Notwithstanding his political flirtation with the far-right "Otzma Yehudit" party (in English: "Jewish Strength"), which has just banned the Supreme Court to let one of its leading politicians compete in the election at all. And although Netanyahu recently downgraded the Muslim and Christian minorities to second-class citizens, publicly affirming, "Israel is the nation-state of the Jewish people - and only of this."

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Leading politician of the party "Otzma Yehudit"

There are many reasons for Netanyahu's good poll numbers. The economy of the start-up nation is booming, firstly. Secondly , the situation in the occupied Palestinian territories plays only a marginal role in public discourse. In addition, thirdly , his electoral base admires that the foreign-policy-savvy PM has forged alliances with other state leaders who share his world view in part:

• These include US President Donald Trump ( dealing with media ),
• Hungary's Prime Minister Viktor Orbán (Understanding Democracy ),
• but also the Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman ( fear of Iran ).

What drives Netanyahu? The prospect of entering the Israeli history books in the summer as the country's longest-serving prime minister. And the fear of being sued by the Attorney General for bribery, embezzlement and fraud

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Benjamin Netanyahu

The 69-year-old is a gifted populist and fights in this election campaign for his political existence. He relies mainly on Twitter and Facebook. "Netanyahu uses and abuses social media better than Trump and Obama," says Oz-Salzberger, himself a much-Twitterin.

"Hate is the lowest common denominator"

"He gives what he wants to his electorate base, and hatred is the lowest common denominator, hatred of all who criticize Israel and hatred of those who do not think so, like political rights." The result is a poisoned discourse. "Slow-growing madness has now become complete madness," says Oz-Salzberger, "the democratization of evil."

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Itamar Ben Gvir (left) from the far-right party "Otzma Yehudit" argues with Atta Abu Miniam, an Arab politician

Her father had always been more than a novelist. Amos Oz was the last public intellectual in Israel, the red rabbi of the secular left, whose influence reached far into the middle of society.

"His death was in some ways symbolic, he was a kind of public intellectual who has become obsolete," says Ron Robin, a small-eyed man, historian and president of Haifa University. In his function he does not think about the everyday small and small of politics. He is interested in the big connections.

Ron Robin / University of Haifa

Ron Robin

He says Israel does not need prophets like Oz did. "We need intellectuals who give citizens an idea of ​​how modern technology is changing every aspect of their daily lives and how we can integrate these fundamental changes into our political thinking."

For example, how fake news campaigns can work in times of social media and influence voting behavior. Benny Gantz, the challenger of Netanyahu, has yet to learn. "Gantz talked with my father for hours before he died," says Oz-Salzberger. "He was convinced Gantz could become a Premier, a very decent one."

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Gabi Ashkenazi, Moshe Ja'alon, Benny Gantz, Jair Lapid - the four leading politicians of "Blue and White"

Alone: ​​At the moment he does not use much. For a whole week, Israel has been talking about a hacking affair that could massively harm Gantz. Israeli TV channel "Twelve" reported a few days ago that its private smartphone had been hacked - by Iran. The archenemy could allegedly blackmail the ex-chief of staff with a sex video, it said. Gantz is said to have been informed weeks ago by the domestic intelligence service about the hack.

He has denied the existence of intimate moving images on his smartphone, Tehran rejected the report as a lie, and so far, none of the alleged files has been published. The story is confused.

Above all, there is a question in the room: Who gave the hint to the media? The domestic intelligence service is under Netanyahu. However, the prime minister and his Likud party are guilty of all blame. Who is lying, who is telling the truth? Open. One thing is clear: hardly anyone talks about Netanyahu's own corruption scandals.

"The next revolution is on the way"

Like the PM, his political partners are better at social media multiplication than Gantz and the ranks of ex-generals surrounding him who want to recapture Israel's democracy. Especially Ayelet Schaked. The hardliner used to work for Netanyahu and has the potential to inherit him once.

Today she is Minister of Justice and Co-Chief of the party "The New Rights". This week, the 42-year-old caused an uproar with an online campaign spot outside the internet.

ABIR SULTAN / EPA-EFE / REX

Ayelet Schaked and Naftali Bennett

In a black-and-white glossy video, the politicians drive through their hair, put on earrings and looks with conspiratorial look into the camera. From the off a female voice whispers buzz words. Including: "Taming the Supreme Court".

הבושם שהשמאלנים פחות יאהבו. pic.twitter.com/vaQCtkT4Cr

That's what it's all about: Schaked promotes judicial reform. It considers the highest judges in the country as opponents. In the video she takes a perfume bottle in her hand and sprays it. It says: "Fascism". This is the charge of their political rivals. Schaked says: "For me it smells more like democracy." At the end of the clip, their central message is displayed: "The next revolution is on the way."