Atif Salem, former Egyptian ambassador to Tel Aviv, stated that the occupied Palestinian territories have been “teeming with continuous protests” since Netanyahu’s current government came to power in January 2023. These protests began against judicial reforms and shifted after the events of October 7 to demands for the return of detainees and prisoners.

In a televised interview on the program “Al-Soura” aired on Al-Nahar, he explained that Israeli society is divided into two currents: the “Haredi” religious current that controls the government and holds a Torah-based vision, and the “liberal” current, which includes weak opposition parties seeking to oust Netanyahu without success.

He rejected the opinion that Netanyahu’s popularity is declining, saying, “I disagree with this; Netanyahu’s popularity is increasing,” despite chants and protests against him by the families of hostages.

He cited Netanyahu being named “the most influential Jewish personality in the world” at the end of the last Hebrew year, in addition to his lead in the latest opinion polls over all his competitors.

He explained that Netanyahu is currently planning early elections within the Likud party on November 24 to eliminate some of his rivals inside the party and “may then consider dissolving the Knesset and calling for early general elections.”

He confirmed that Netanyahu “will definitely be held accountable” for the failures of October 7 under the investigation law that allows the formation of an official inquiry committee that could lead to his dismissal.

He considered that stopping the war in Gaza now is a “risk” for Netanyahu because it contradicts the doctrine of his right-wing government and would cost him popularity among the Haredi current.

He predicted that Netanyahu would exploit any “hesitation” by Hamas in implementing the agreement’s terms, such as disarmament, to fabricate a problem regarding the agreement, or resort to “dissolving the Knesset” to stop the entire operation, or provoke a war with Iran. He cited warnings from former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, who expressed concerns about Netanyahu’s request to postpone the 2026 elections for security reasons, which implies war.

He ruled out the ability of Netanyahu’s partners in the far-right coalition, Ben Gvir and Smotrich, to topple the government, saying, “Impossible, their chance in any second government is very weak,” explaining that Smotrich’s party did not exceed the electoral threshold to enter the Knesset in the latest opinion polls.