Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will seek re-election this year, his Likud party said on Wednesday, amid tension with the US over the Iran war.
The Party said that he would run in the election and “with God's help, he will win”. Mr Netanyahu is one of the most right-wing prime ministers since Israel was created in 1948, and the longest serving.
He has served in the position three times since the 1990s. During his current tenure, which started in 2022, he has steered Israel through the Gaza war and several aerial wars with Iran, as well as wars with the Iran-backed Hezbollah armed group in Lebanon. These wars have raised tension between Israel and the US, which is engaged in talks with Tehran that aim at long-term peace.
US President Donald Trump said he was not sure if Mr Netanyahu would run again. According to the Israeli system, the elections must be held by October. On Tuesday, ABC News quoted Mr Trump as saying that Mr Netanyahu has “had an amazing career”, and asking: “Does he want to continue?“
Last week, Mr Trump confirmed reports that he called Mr Netanyahu “crazy” over a phone call, stressing that despite this, the two men get along well. Mr Trump supported Mr Netanyahu when he faced corruption charges in 2019, with a corruption trial still under way.
During his current term, which started a little over three years ago, Israel's ties worsened with Jordan, as well as with Egypt, the only two Arab countries with formal peace treaties with Israel.
Polls suggest that his coalition would fail to win a majority at the next election. However, Mr Netanyahu's political career has been marked by dumbfounding sceptics and winning cliffhanger political contests. His opponents may also need to include Arab parties in any coalition to have a chance at unseating Mr Netanyahu. The prospect of such a coalition is not favoured by some in the opposition to Mr Netanyahu.
Sixty-one per cent of Israelis believe that Mr Netanyahu should not run for another term, according to the Israel Democracy Institute, a think tank in Jerusalem.
