Netanyahu cares for nothing – except himself

Benjamin Netanyahu doesn’t care. He doesn’t care that Palestinian civilians are dying. If he did, he’d call the food trucks in and order his bombers out.

He doesn’t care that Israeli hostages are dying. If he did, he’d declare a ceasefire to allow some to be exchanged – the only way that large numbers of hostages have been recovered in this war to date.

He doesn’t care that three-quarters of Israelis want an end to the war to allow the remaining hostages to be freed, according to a Channel 12 poll last month.

He doesn’t care that more Israeli soldiers will die, in addition to the 454 killed so far in ground operations under his command since the October 7, 2023, Hamas massacre.

If he did, he’d heed the warning of the Israeli army chief of staff, Eyal Zamir, who last week said that the prime minister’s stated intention to occupy Gaza would “place a heavy burden on, and lead to the erosion of, both the reserve and compulsory service soldiers”, according to Channel 12. It would also “significantly endanger the lives of the hostages”, Zamir reportedly said.

Netanyahu doesn’t care that every one of his previous military operations which he’d pledged would “eliminate” Hamas has failed to meet this objective. Or that his stated objective of elimination is unachievable. If he did, he’d declare a realistic aim instead, such as degrading Hamas to the point where it can no longer attack Israel, a mission Israel’s forces already have accomplished.

As 600 of Israel’s former security officials, generals and spy chiefs wrote in an open letter to Trump last week: “It is our professional judgment that Hamas no longer poses a strategic threat to Israel.”

Netanyahu doesn’t care that most of the people of his vital ally, the United States, have turned against Israel as a result of his atrocities in Gaza, according to a Pew Research Center poll in March. Or that 78 per cent of Americans want an immediate ceasefire, according to an Economist/YouGov poll last week.

He doesn’t care that the US president, Israel’s ultimate security guarantor, contradicted him publicly and berated him privately over the starvation of children in Gaza. If he did, he’d change his policies or drop his denials.

And he doesn’t care that almost all of Israel’s traditional friends are distancing themselves from his government. Germany is halting the export of offensive weapons and Britain, France, Canada and Australia are in the process of recognising a state called Palestine.

He cared just enough about the loss of global support to hold an English-language press conference on Sunday, a rare event aimed at overseas audiences.

But not enough to change course: “To have European countries and Australia to march into that rabbit hole,” of recognising Palestine “is disappointing, and I think it’s actually shameful. But it’s not going to take, it’s not going to change our position.”

So what does he care about? In a word, himself. He is doing what he must to hold his precarious coalition government together by pandering to its most mutinously inclined elements. Specifically, his far-right allies, Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, of the Religious Zionist party, and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir of the Otzma Yehudit party.

These men demand continuous hostilities against Palestinians in both of the Palestinian enclaves, Gaza and the West Bank. They rank aggression against Palestinians above the lives of the Israeli hostages.

However far Netanyahu goes in acting against the Palestinians, it is never enough for Smotrich and Ben-Gvir. Indeed, Smotrich on Saturday criticised Netanyahu for half-measures in Gaza.

When the prime minister said he would order the army to occupy Gaza City, Smotrich said this was inadequate. He’d “lost faith that the prime minister is able and wants to lead the IDF to a decisive victory”. He implied that he’d be prepared to quit Netanyahu’s government unless his demands were accommodated.

This is the perpetual condition of the Netanyahu coalition, meaning he must wage perpetual war.

The alternative, as articulated by Ehud Barak, Israel’s former army chief, former prime minister, and ranked with two others as the most highly decorated soldier in Israel’s history: “From this position of strength,” he wrote in May, “Israel can now afford to pivot towards a broader deal: release all hostages (living and dead), end the war and pursue a peaceful regional order.”

Barak also explained why Netanyahu would reject this constructive solution: “Embracing this path would break Netanyahu’s coalition and likely end his political career. The prime minister is not acting in the national interest; he is acting purely for self-preservation. Every other argument is a smokescreen.”

Beyond his prime ministership, Netanyahu is protecting himself from two other personal reckonings. If he loses power, he will be held to account for the Israeli lapses that allowed Hamas’ barbaric assault in October 2023. Most Israelis hold him responsible. He is not interested in being the subject of a national investigation.

Second, there are three corruption cases still pending against him. The prime ministership protects him from accountability here, too.

A “total victory” over Hamas, says Barak, is a “mirage”, which is exactly why it’s so convenient for Netanyahu. So long as he rules, the war rages.

So what’s the point of London, Paris, Ottawa and Canberra moving to recognise Palestinian statehood? Surely it cannot stop Netanyahu fighting his one-man war of self-preservation.

Netanyahu himself gave a blunt explanation at his Sunday press conference: “Many of these leaders tell me in private conversations, ‘We agree with you. We understand what you’re doing. We would do the same.’ But they say, ‘We have to cater to public opinion at home.’ I tell them, ‘It’s your problem.’”

He’s right that these governments are responding to pressure from their electorates. He’s wrong that it’s their problem alone. It’s also Israel’s.

Since its founding in 1947, Israel has struggled to win support and recognition around the world. It was on the cusp of winning diplomatic recognition from Saudi Arabia when Hamas attacked. One of its specific aims was to sabotage the negotiations. It succeeded.

Netanyahu is making Israel untouchable. And that is rewarding Hamas.

Peter Hartcher is international editor.

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