No one expected that the end of the Gaza War would not be the end of Israel's national celebration, but a turning point in Prime Minister Netanyahu's political career.
Hamas accepted the ceasefire, released hostages, and withdrew from Gaza. On the face of it, Israel seemed to have won. But the atmosphere in the country is completely different from that of a winner.
The street protests continued, the quarrels within Congress were endless, and even old allies began to suggest that it was time for him to leave.
This war, in the end, not only turned Gaza into ruins, but also defeated Netanyahu’s power base.
From the collapse of public opinion, to the resumption of judicial trials, to diplomatic isolation, he has gone to a situation of "retreat and difficulty".
On the surface, he won the war, but in fact he lost the hearts of the people.
After the war ceasefire, Netanyahu immediately stood up and said that Israel had won. He stressed that the goal has been accomplished and national security has been guaranteed.
But as soon as this came out, it immediately raised a question in the country: the people did not see Hamas's compromise, but did not want to believe it was the price of "victory."
From the beginning, this war has been suspected by many people of "political calculations." Netanyahu, whose approval rating was already low, briefly recovered after the outbreak of the war. But as time dragged on, everyone's patience was exhausted.
Many began to feel that he was not fighting for national security, but for his political survival.
More subtly, former U.S. President Trump suddenly appeared in the Israeli Knesset and made some words of "dissuading him." On the surface, he was on Israel's side and said he wanted to stabilize the situation of his allies, but in and out of his words he implied that it was time to come down.
Such occasions, such occasions, such words, are not coincidental.Trump himself does not want to see the Middle East continuing to turmoil, especially when he seeks a political return.
Netanyahu's coalition government to maintain the regime was unable to withstand. The ruling coalition, which seemed to be a piece of iron, has now been loose. Key parties have opened up the proposal that if he is willing to resign, it can be considered to fight for him in justice.
It’s not negotiation, it’s compulsion, his allies don’t want to play with him anymore.
The war delayed the trial, and the ceasefire released the “hand of the law.”
In fact, Netanyahu’s trouble did not begin with the war. He had been facing corruption charges for a long time, but the war gave him some time to fight. From being prosecuted to the trial, to the suspension of the judicial process because of the war, he used the “national security” card to play a lot.
But now that the war is over and the judiciary has no reason to hold the case back.The Supreme Court has made it clear that the trial will be resumed early next year.This means that Netanyahu has to face his own many unclear cases again.
What’s worse, the war itself also lost him a lot of support. The economy was severely injured, the financial pressure exploded, and the cost of living of the people soared. And those decisions he made during the war, especially some of the actions that caused huge casualties, made many people start to doubt whether his judgment was out of reality.
Some choices in the war, such as the timing of ground attacks and the way the troops are deployed, have raised a lot of controversy in the country.Many people do not feel that these actions are really necessary, but rather feel that they are doing a “political show”.
Looking at the United States, although Trump has come forward, what he can do is actually very limited. The president of the United States has no power to decide the operation of other countries' judicial systems. At most, he can say a few words at the diplomatic level. Even if he really wants to help Netanyahu, he can only rely on political influence to play the "edge ball", but Israel's domestic judicial process does not follow this trick.
More realistically, the U.S. Congress has long passed a bill to restrict the president's interference in international justice. Therefore, what Trump can do is to persuade him to retire early and not cause more trouble.
Diplomatic distrust, regional relations can no longer be covered
In addition to domestic turmoil, Netanyahu also fell into unprecedented diplomatic isolation. He had tried to accept the reality of neighboring countries through a tough security policy. But the war broke down, and even Saudi Arabia made it clear that as long as he was on the table, he could not talk about building relations.
This is not to scare people, nor is it a diplomatic scene. Saudi Arabia putting "Netanyahu must step down" on the table as a prerequisite for restoring relations is tantamount to telling Israel directly: We don't recognize your prime minister. This public denial not only embarrasses Netanyahu, but also puts pressure on the entire Israeli government.
Earlier, Israel accidentally bombed Qatar's temporary diplomatic point in Gaza, causing diplomatic casualties. This incident triggered a strong reaction from Gulf countries. Almost all countries recalled their ambassadors to Israel, and diplomatic relations fell to the bottom overnight. Qatar even suspended natural gas exports to Israel, which directly led to soaring energy prices and public complaints.
A few days after the war, Netanyahu approved air strikes in Lebanon, saying they were attacking Hezbollah strongholds, but this was seen by many countries as an attempt to create a reason to "continue fighting." He seemed reluctant to return the country to peace because then he would lose his status as a "wartime prime minister."
But now, even the attitude of the Israeli military has changed. The defense minister stood up and said clearly that the ceasefire agreement must be implemented to the end and can no longer be opened.
In the past, Netanyahu was able to tie the military to his chariot with the sign "national security", but now the card is not useful.
conclusion
Now, it seems that Netanyahu has faced three mountains at the same time: the collapse of domestic support, the opening of the judicial door, and the complete obstruction of diplomacy. The war did not make him stronger, but exposed his weaknesses more thoroughly.
Even if he temporarily relies on Trump's political "asylum" to delay time, it only delays the timetable for stepping down. His coalition government is disintegrating, and the next thing is not "whether to leave", but "when to hand over power".
The end of the war in Gaza is not the end of peace in the Middle East, but it truly marks the end of an era. Netanyahu, the character who has played on war and security cards for decades, has finally been thoroughly refuted in a time-consuming war.
His curtain call sounded a wake-up call to the entire Israeli political arena: the logic of winning power through war will not go far after all.
As Israeli writer Amos Oz once said, "When we draw the border with tanks, the real border has long since collapsed in the depths of the heart." Wars can end, but once trust is lost, it can never be returned.
The reference information:
Trump flies to Israel to speak to Israeli parliament 2025-10-13 07:37
Is Netanyahu's big trouble coming? 2025-07-16 18:08·Xinhuanet