Israeli voters give opposing verdicts on Netanyahu's wartime record

Interviews outside a Tel Aviv polling station contrast praise for the prime minister's war leadership with anger over security failures and national division.

Channel: TBS NEWS DIG Powered by JNN ·

JapanStory of October 28, 2026Trari Newsroom

Why this story? One of TBS NEWS DIG Powered by JNN's most watched videos since yesterday, with 168,174 views.

TBS NEWS DIG Powered by JNN: The news channel of JNN, a Japanese news network led by TBS. 3.4M subscribers and 5.7B views.

「この4年はただただ悲惨」イスラエル総選挙、ネタニヤフ政権に“審判の時”イスラエルの投票所で見えた市民の“本音”【news23】｜TBS NEWS DIG

Things we can learn from the video

Press to jump

0:13Voters contrast support for Netanyahu's war leadership with criticism of security failures and political division.
1:00Pre-election polling leaves both political camps short of a parliamentary majority.
1:44The report presents accountability for failing to prevent the October 2023 Hamas attack as a central election issue.
2:32A Be'eri resident questions leadership accountability and argues that coexistence with Gaza requires a solution.
4:04Masuo reports record turnout for that stage of election day: 44.9% after seven hours.
5:03The closing analysis anticipates difficult coalition talks and limited immediate security-policy change under Eisenkot.

A Netanyahu supporter credits him with wartime achievements nobody else could deliver. Another voter describes the past four years as terrible. A third wants a prime minister who will stop deepening divisions between Israelis.

Those contrasting judgments frame an election-day report from Japan's TBS NEWS DIG Powered by JNN. Middle East bureau chief Satoshi Masuo reports outside a Tel Aviv polling station, where party booths line the road and campaigners make their final appeals to voters.

The central question is whether Benjamin Netanyahu's reputation for protecting Israel can survive scrutiny of the October 2023 Hamas attack. The report says the attackers killed about 1,200 people and took more than 250 hostages. It presents the failure to prevent that attack as a major issue in the election, alongside the wars that followed.

In Be'eri, a community beside Gaza, a resident named Abraham walks through destroyed housing. According to the report, more than 100 residents were killed in the attack, homes were burned and most residents remain away. Abraham questions both the leadership's accountability and how such a small country can remain at war for so long. He argues that finding a way to coexist with Gaza is unavoidable.

The broadcast also reports continued Israeli attacks in Gaza despite a ceasefire agreement with Hamas, and Israeli operations against Iran alongside the United States. These form the backdrop to voters' competing assessments of Netanyahu's record.

Masuo reports that turnout reached 44.9% seven hours after voting began, the highest figure for that stage of the day since comparable records began. But high participation does not resolve the coalition problem: the pre-election polling shown in the segment leaves both Netanyahu's supporters and the opposing camp short of the 61 seats needed for a majority in the 120-seat Knesset.

The closing studio discussion adds a distinction between changing leaders and changing security policy. It describes opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot's approach as close to Netanyahu's, suggesting that even a transfer of power might not bring an immediate, visible shift toward Iran or Hamas.

Published on Trari