Israelis head to the polls on Oct. 27 in what many call the most pivotal election in the country's history. For Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank, the stakes are equally existential, though they cannot vote. Since the Hamas-led attacks on Oct. 7, 2023, life under Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right‑wing government has become "almost unbearable," says displaced Gazan Nidal Kuhail. Netanyahu has ruled out a Palestinian state and accelerated settlement expansion — over 100 new outposts in the West Bank — while withholding billions in tax revenue from the Palestinian Authority and barring Palestinian workers from Israel.
His main rival, Gadi Eisenkot, also rejects statehood but promises to curb settler violence and engage with the Trump administration's cease‑fire plan for Gaza. Palestinians interviewed do not expect Eisenkot to transform their situation, but they are desperate to avoid another four years of Netanyahu. In the West Bank, settler attacks during the olive harvest have surged, with Israeli police detaining at least 10 Israelis after assaults on Palestinians, a U.S. photographer and European diplomats. The Israeli military says it targets Hamas militants, but local health officials report more than 1,400 killed in Gaza since the last cease‑fire.
Source: New York Times Top Stories · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing