Israel needs elections now
Op-ed: The person solely responsible for not providing security to Israel's citizens is Benjamin Netanyahu; and just as he judged prime ministers in the past, so must he be judged now.
The news headlines on Tuesday morning heralded "efforts to ease tensions" – or in other words, the leaders of the parties that make up Benjamin Netanyahu's feuding government are trying to preserve the coalition, despite the differences of opinion on a wide range of issues that appear unbridgeable. And then we learned of the massacre at the synagogue in Jerusalem's Har Nof neighborhood.
Everyone who's been observing events here in recent months comes to the conclusion that there is no calm and there will be no calm in the united Jerusalem expanse. It's safe to say that today, one year and nine months into the Netanyahu government's term in office, and in light of a series of failures related to guaranteeing the security of Israeli citizens, the prime minister no longer enjoys the public's confidence.
In a proper-functioning reality, such failures would oblige the prime minister to make an announcement about early elections to the Knesset – and not about zero-VAT, not about adversarial legislation pertaining to definitions of the Jewish nation-state that is tearing Israeli society apart and creating rifts that topple governments.
It began with the release of hundreds of murderers in the framework of the Gilad Shalit prisoner-exchange deal. And were I a cynical man, I'd add that by their despicable actions, the two killers who butchered the worshipers in the synagogue also "thanked" Netanyahu for the release of one of their family members in the Shalit deal, alongside other released prisoners who are steering the Palestinian uprising from the Gaza Strip and Turkey, to which they were "exiled."
Moreover, we were told that Hamas was dealt a resounding blow in last summer's military operation. This doesn't appear to be the case. The Hamas government is readying for the next round of conflict with Israel, and its people are spurring on the perpetrators of terror in Jerusalem and the West Bank.
With this in mind, it's hard to understand why the country's decision-makers persist in proposing responses that have already been tried in the past and failed to restore calm to the streets. Why the attack on Mahmoud Abbas, who Netanyahu and ministers in his government ministers hold responsible for the attacks?
Even the head of the Shin Bet security service admitted on Tuesday that Abbas is not inciting and is not working, overtly or covertly, towards the renewal of terror activities. The proposals raised on Tuesday at the meeting with the prime minister – to demolish the homes of terrorists and to deport their families to Gaza – have been tried in the past, and failed to prove beneficial in terms of easing the tensions and hatred.
Netanyahu is demanding condemnation for the attack from the international community. Truth be told, it makes no difference – in the same way the proposals to sanction Israel for building in the settlements that are being discussed by the European Union don't and won't have any influence over the situation on the ground.
Make no mistake, the individual directly and solely responsible for not providing security to the citizens of Israel is Benjamin Netanyahu.
In times gone by, and rightly so, Netanyahu pointed an accusatory finger at prime ministers who failed to preserve security – such was the case with Shimon Peres, and such was the case with Yitzhak Shamir.
Regrettably, the foreseeable future doesn't appear to hold much chance for any change in our faceoff with the Palestinians. Early elections to the Knesset, with the formulation of courses of action that also include talks with the Palestinians, is the solution to what now appears to be total chaos.
