00:01Israel is preparing to vote on Tuesday in national elections widely seen as a referendum on longtime
00:07Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Polls show Netanyahu running neck and neck with contender
00:13Gadi Eisencott, who has risen up as the Prime Minister's chief rival. Eisencott has pledged a
00:19state commission of inquiry into the feelings that led to Hamas's October 7, 2023 attack
00:25under Netanyahu's watch, a prominent election issue for many Israelis. Netanyahu's critics
00:32accuse him of putting his political survival above the greater good, and he is currently
00:37facing trial on corruption charges, which he denies. His supporters see him as a veteran
00:43statesman who has gone toe-to-toe with U.S. presidents and other world leaders, resisting
00:48pressure to end the war in Gaza or make other concessions that could harm Israel's security.
00:53The election campaign has seen no debate, however, over Israel's conduct in Gaza following the
00:59attack, and both of the main electoral blocs are dominated by parties that support Jewish
01:04settlement in the occupied West Bank and oppose the establishment of a Palestinian state, and
01:10no major candidate is advocating a return to the peace process. Israelis vote for parties,
01:16not specific candidates, and no single party is expected to win an absolute majority in parliament
01:21known as the Knesset. Whoever can gather a majority coalition will become the next prime minister.
