Netanyahu’s political future at stake with Iran war: experts

Raviv Druker, a prominent journalist on Channel 13 television, argued that Netanyahu “will try to convince people that the victory is total even if that is an illusion,” noting that “Hamas still runs Gaza, and Iran remains Iran even after Saturday’s strike”.

On the popular news website Walla, journalist Ouriel Deskal went further, suggesting Netanyahu may have chosen the timing of the hostilities to automatically delay – under a state of emergency – the March 30 deadline for passing a budget for which he has struggled to secure a majority.

Without a budget, the government would fall on April 1 and elections would be called.

In that scenario, Netanyahu would enter the campaign from a position of weakness.

By contrast “if this war against Iran is a success for Israel, it will be a political victory for Netanyahu,” Navon said.

But should the war drag on, the picture could shift dramatically, Horowitz warned.

“Public tolerance for a long war with heavy casualties, combined with a high cost of living, remains extremely low,” he said.