Jerusalem Post: Israel's confidence in itself and its political and military leaders has been damaged and its sense of security has declined (Agencies)

A report published by the Israeli newspaper "Jerusalem Post" says that the "catastrophe" of the attack by the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) on October 7 brought about a radical shift in Israel's political landscape.

Common sense dictates this conclusion, confirmed by historical precedent, and polls show its inevitability.

He added that Israel on December 20 is not Israel on October <>, and everyone is aware of that. Israel's confidence in itself and in its political and military leaders has been damaged, and its sense of security has declined.

He stressed that Israel is currently gripped by anxiety and anger, and there is hatred burning towards Hamas, and there is intense anger towards the government, and asked: How can Israel fail miserably?

Signs of anger

One sign of anger is the reluctance of government ministers and Knesset members to appear in public, and the small number of prominent politicians visiting the wounded in hospitals or even attending funerals these days, common courtesies in the past, because of concern about the reactions they will encounter.

In October 1973, Israel faced a similar catastrophe, the Yom Kippur War, which turned society and the political scene upside down, causing outrage, frustration and thousands of casualties, and in the left losing its dominance of politics since Israel's founding, and bringing the right (starting with Menachem Begin) to prevail for most of the next 50 years.

He added that the October 1973 offensive certainly will not push Israel to the left, in any way similar to the October <> war, but it will lead to something different, the country's political constellation will change, even if the balance between right and left is unlikely to change significantly. There will be dramatic shifts within the blocs (right, left, and center), although there are few significant changes between them.

Expected political map

Benny Gantz's National Unity Bloc is likely to lead by a large margin over any of the current parties in the Knesset, Likud Yesh Atid and the Religious Zionist Party to fall sharply, Yisrael Beiteinu adds seats, and the Jewish Greatness Party, Arab and Haredi parties will remain fairly stable.

Former Mossad chief Yossi Cohen may lead a party, and Yair Golan may lead Meretz, whose stock has risen dramatically after his "courageous" actions during the Hamas offensive, a unified left-wing party. There is also talk of forming a party of leaders of the anti-judicial reform protest movement.

In general, the parties competing in the upcoming elections will be very different from the composition last time.

Opinion polls suggest that after the war, much of the public will not allow the Israeli political scene to return to the way it was before.

Source: Jerusalem Post