After the elections in Israel: Bibi blames his own Habibis

The election in Israel is over, but the post-election campaign has only just begun. The parties are positioning themselves for possible coalition negotiations - or, in the case of the Likud Party and its leader Benjamin Netanyahu, simply sowing doubts about the legitimacy of the election.

“Israel’s elections were stolen,” the party said on Thursday. It is about an “attack on democracy” with the aim of “Islamizing Israel and overthrowing the right-wing government.” No Zionist party is allowed to cooperate with the Arab parties.

The right-wing extremist security minister Itamar Ben Gvir even called for the heads of the Israeli-Arab parties to be arrested. The Ra'am Party rejected the allegations.

At least there is a real background: The Central Election Committee, chaired by Judge Noam Sohlberg, has instructed the domestic secret service Shin Bet to investigate because there is a suspicion that Qatar has sent “significant sums” to Israel in order to influence the Arab electorate.

“I have been made aware of serious suspicions of undue influence on the election through funding from foreign actors acting against Israeli interests,” a letter from Sohlberg was quoted by the Times of Israel as saying. The suspicion cannot yet be confirmed, he explains, but one needs to “investigate thoroughly.”

The fact that the Gulf state of Qatar is involved in Israel and the Palestinian territories is nothing new. A close confidant of Prime Minister Netanyahu is currently at the center of investigations. He is said to have worked on behalf of Doha, among other things, to polish Qatar's image.

For decades, Qatar has also provided funds to the Palestinian militia and party Hamas in the Gaza Strip. This happened with Israel's tolerance, and according to Qatari diplomatic circles, even at Jerusalem's express request. Prime Minister Netanyahu, who has now been in office for over 18 years, was also involved in the whole matter.

Of course, the opposition also takes up Netanyahu's connections to Qatar. Gadi Eisenkot, whose Jashar party won the second most individual votes after Netanyahu, said it was great that Netanyahu was finally condemning Qatar's influence in the state of Israel. Such interference is “unacceptable”, whether it occurs at the polls or in the Prime Minister’s Office.

Eisenkot also took up the undertone of the accusations: the prime minister was exerting “undue influence on the Israeli public” with the aim of “delaying the timely publication of the election results” and delegitimizing them.

Jon Polin, son of hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin, who was murdered by Hamas, expressed clear criticism of Netanyahu: It is “ironic” that the prime minister of all people is now complaining about Qatar's possible influence.

There is a lot at stake for Netanyahu: With just 53 seats, his governing coalition has missed the majority of 61 in the Knesset and has suffered a loss of 11 seats compared to the last election in 2022. The Zionist opposition camp won 48 seats, the remaining 19 seats in the Knesset go to the two Arab electoral lists, Ra'am and the Joint List.

The chances that the opposition bloc will agree to a unity government with Netanyahu are not particularly good. Avigdor Lieberman, whose Israel Beitenu won 7 seats, recently publicly stated that he would “neither sit with Bibi nor with Tibi.”

Ahmad Tibi is one of the party leaders of the Arab Joint List. He therefore rules out a coalition with Netanyahu or the Arab parties. Even if the other two conservative-right parties agreed with the Zionist opposition: Without Israel Beitenu, this constellation would not get the necessary seats.

So what now? More and more Israelis are expecting new elections. “In April then,” smiles a young man in a café in the liberal heart of Tel Aviv. This is what the state-set deadlines want if the formation of a government fails. What else is left to him but gallows humor, he asks.