The Arab world is following Israel’s election with unprecedented attention. In the past, Israeli coverage in Arab media was shallow and commentators seemed not to truly understand what was happening in the country. Today, in the era of social media and artificial intelligence, the picture has changed – Arab media now demonstrate deep understanding of Israel’s political system.
2+Al Jazeera, the Qatari network, recently held a television panel discussing the Knesset elections. Host Othman Ay Farah displayed expertise in issues facing voters at the polls: “There’s the issue of haredi conscription—the haredim are the ultra-Orthodox. They have an exemption from military service because they only study Torah. But those with exemptions, who numbered in the hundreds at first, have become tens of thousands.”
2+Among many in the Arab world, and also among Israel’s Arab public, there’s hope to see the current government end its term. In a clip posted by the Joint List, Knesset member Ahmad Tibi is seen speaking at a conference in Jaffa over the weekend: “Voting for the Joint List is a guarantee to topple this government and give an opportunity for an alternative government. Less bad. Not the knight on the white horse, but less bad.”
International Arab media are also well aware of the power the Arab-Israeli vote holds in Knesset elections, and the topic comes up for discussion many times. Former Knesset member Niveen Abu Rahmoun said in an interview she gave this month to Al-Mayadeen, the Lebanese channel close to Hezbollah: “We as Palestinians relate to the Knesset as an arena of struggle, within additional arenas and fields of struggle.”
2+But alongside the strong desire to replace Netanyahu, some in Arab media are careful to emphasize that alternatives to his rule don’t herald real good news from their perspective either. Eisenkot is particularly remembered for the Dahiya Doctrine he conceived after the Second Lebanon War. The doctrine advocates using massive firepower against Hezbollah and against infrastructure in Lebanon. Either way, Israel’s election has long ceased to be just an Israeli matter. The Arab world understands well that the decision at the ballot box will also affect the entire region.