"Shortly after the meeting, one of the groups, B’Tselem, called on the international community to punish Israel for the continued occupation of the West Bank."

So Israel must be punished?

it was the arrogant contemptuous and public comments about Likud supporters by the left wing government fed artists who made the 'left' a dirty word... not Bibi... but then the Israeli left has rarely been self-critical when it can blame Bibi for outlasting BenGurion (no undictatorial PM himself either), and for speaking truths about Palestinians, Economics, and Democracy.

The old slogans don't make sense any longer. In Israel it didn't make sense even before 1977, but it took Begin to prove it then, albeit a little late. Hillary Clinton was clearly a Centrist and won the popular vote in America in 2016. Naturally, the Center will also win the electoral vote in the US, maybe before 2020. And next month the Center will win in France.

The movement is ongoing and nothing can stop it because in their soul humanity and goodness overcome what is bad in the world which most often coalesced in the extremist parties. In the next Israeli elections it will be the Center that will sweep with its liberal agendas.

Benjamin Natanyahu had nothing to do with ther demise of the labour party. From 1948 until 1977 when Labour ruled the country stagnated. After 1977 when The eletorate finally came to its senses, the industrial, medical, agricultural and commercial advances were staggering. All the constrictions were lifted and the country has become an Industrial Giant. The electorate also realized that the action of Ben Gurion of ordering his cohorts to destroy the Altalena and all its armaments, cost the country hundreds of lives in having two more wars to liberate the occupied territories by Jordan and Arab bands.
Sorry I do not accept your sob story that the fall of the left was due to Benjamin Natanyahu. It was due to their ineptness and selfishness. They regarded an agreement as no more than a piece of paper, and they paid e price. I wish them to remain in the wilderness of their own creation for many, many years to come

does "stink" indeed. It's not Bibi or Right that are "guilty" of anything, it's the Leftist, treacherous agenda, that's an abomination on our political scene.

Thank you, sir, for saying it.

Nadav Eyal is correct to condemn the poisonous character of much political discourse in Israel, but his attempt to blame it all on Netanyahu is baseless and itself an example of such discourse. Eyal is too young, maybe, to remember how the right was demonized and publicly marginalized during 1949-1977. The lead was given, alas, by Ben Gurion himself, despite his many merits otherwise. As Eyal should know, Ben Gurion referred to Begin in the Knesset not by his name but as "the gentleman sitting to the right of MK Bader." But Eyal began his career during Netanyahu's first government of 1996-1999, when Netanyahu was subjected to an endless torrent of vicious accusations from the left and in the media. It was to the credit of Ari Shavit to protest against the phenomenon in his famous 1998 article "The Year of Hating Bibi" in HaAretz, which Eyal must have read. Nobody in the history of Israel, except perhaps Begin, has been a greater victim of poisonous political discourse. It is regrettable that Netanyahu began to respond in kind, but also eminently understandable.

I read the following: "Israel is the only state in the world which was founded by left-wing parties". Really? Yes, indeed if you just "forget" to mention that e.g. a Nahum Sokolov a furious opponent to a Jewish state. (read the introduction to his "history of Zionism", if you still succeed to find an exemplary), if you "forget" Weizmann's answer to Jabotinsky that a Jewish majority versus an Arab minority would be a Hottentoten justice, if you "forget" to mention that at the Biltmore Conference in New York as a reaction to Hitler's final solution, the Hachomer Hatsair fought with all its might against an urgent demand for a "Jewish Commonwealth", and the furious struggle from the "Left" against ETSEL and LEHI who, they indeed, fought for a Jewish state... I could go on and on… But enough, I am disgusted!

Trump by way of lies /distortions & intimidation. This is what Mr.Netanyahu had to endure for years now.

You are presenting only one side of the story, tis same German Government only two weeks ago refused entry to the Turkish Foreign minister on the grounds that he was trying you persuade Turks living in Germany to vote in the Turkish elections. they want the Turks to integrate into their society and to renage on Turkish nationality.. But of course, its ok to interfere in Israel's political system. Somewhat hypocritical ? Smacks of the fact that Nazi blood still runs on the German Foreign MInister Gabriel's blood. there was no reason whatsoever to meet with extreme leftists and supporters of terrorist enemies of Israel. Smacks of a return to Nazism. Your hatred of Israel's Government is taking you to far, I suggest to do your homework more carefully before writing tripe - you convince no body and just create additional enemies