Arab Joint List recommends Benny Gantz to form the next government

September 22, 2019

JERUSALEM (JTA) — The Arab Joint List recommended to President Reuven Rivlin that Blue and White head Benny Gantz be tapped to form the next government in order to end the political career of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Joint List...

Video from Shalom Hartman Institute

September 20, 2019

For those who missed the nearly two hour-long broadcast from the Shalom Hartman Institute on the evening of the Israeli elections, here is the link to follow:

Netanyahu reaches out to form a government with his rival — and gets rejected

September 20, 2019

JERUSALEM (JTA) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reached out to his rival Benny Gantz, the head of the centrist Blue and White party, on Thursday, asking him to form a “broad unity government.” The response from Gantz and his...

The first exit polls for Israel’s Election Day are in. It’s close.

September 18, 2019

By MARCY OSTER

JERUSALEM (JTA) — Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party and the Blue and White were again locked in a virtual dead heat at the close of voting in Israel, exit polls on Tuesday showed.

Both Blue and...

7 things to look for in today’s Israeli elections

September 17, 2019

By MARCY OSTER

JERUSALEM (JTA) — Israelis head to the polls for the second time this year on Tuesday. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is fighting for his political life after a decade in power. But it’s unclear if his centrist...

Netanyahu says he will annex part of the West Bank if re-elected

September 10, 2019

By MARCY OSTER

JERUSALEM (JTA) — Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday that if he is re-elected, he will immediately annex the Jordan Valley.

Netanyahu also promised to annex West Bank Jewish settlements in what he termed a “dramatic...

Here we go again: A beginner’s guide to Israel’s 2nd election in 2019

September 10, 2019

By BEN SALES, EMILY BURRACK, LAURA E. ADKINS  and MARCY OSTER

(JTA) — Trying to understand next week’s Israeli elections can get confusing. Especially since we’re talking about the second election in one year.

Longtime Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is...

Israeli Labor Party leader Amir Peretz shaves trademark mustache to make a political point

August 26, 2019

JERUSALEM (JTA) — Labor Party chairman Amir Peretz has given a whole new meaning to the expression “Read my lips.”

Peretz sacrificed the mustache that he has sported in various stages of bushiness for the past 47 years to make...

Who’s running in Israel’s September elections, explained

August 02, 2019

By MARCY OSTER

JERUSALEM (JTA) — Israel’s upcoming elections in September — just five months after the last ones in April — are essentially a do-over.

In the April election, the right wing won a majority. But because Israel has a...

Ayelet Shaked will head joint electoral list of right-wing parties

July 28, 2019

JERUSALEM (JTA) — The head of the Union of Right-Wing Parties, Rafi Peretz, will turn over the reins of a joint electoral list to New Right Party leader Ayelet Shaked. Peretz made the announcement Sunday afternoon in a tweet.

“We...