Netanyahu's political future and what the 'BibiSitters' want from him

0:00About a month ago, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu took the podium to address the member countries of the United Nations. Before he could even begin speaking, delegates from more than 50 countries left the room in protest over the war in Gaza. Others applauded and cheered them as they walked out. Please order in the hall. A few weeks later, after Israel and Hamas struck a delicate ceasefire deal, U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Whitcoff commended Netanyahu in a speech in Tel Aviv's hostage square, and the crowd booed at the mention of his name. To Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

0:42Oh.

0:47Recent polling shows that more than half of Israelis believe Netanyahu should resign. Meanwhile, his main allies on the far right strongly oppose the ceasefire. They want to push for resettlement or annexation of the Gaza Strip. Consider this. At home and abroad, Netanyahu appears increasingly isolated. After more than two years of an unpopular war and deepening public disapproval and pressure from his own coalition, does Netanyahu still have a political future?

1:22From NPR, I'm Sasha Pfeiffer.

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2:04It's Consider This from NPR. As of today, a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas remains in place. That's even as both sides accuse each other of violations. President Trump's latest actions make it clear that his administration is intent on preserving the ceasefire. Last week, that determination was on full display when a delegation of high-level U.S. officials, including Vice President Vance, arrived in Israel to pressure the Israelis to keep the truce together. The Israeli press gave the group a nickname, BB-sitters. It's a reference to Benjamin Netanyahu, also known as Bibi. Netanyahu is Israel's longest-serving prime minister.

2:45He's held his position for most of the last 16 years. and he's been accused of deliberately extending the war in Gaza. So how much longer will Netanyahu be able to remain in power? We put this question to Anshal Pfeffer. He's the author of Bibi, The Turbulent Life and Times of Benjamin Netanyahu. I think talking about Netanyahu currently as being in power is inaccurate. He's in office. He is the prime minister. That's his title. He chairs the cabinet and he has various responsibilities, But he's not really in power in the sense that he has power over what's happening. As you said, quite rightly, he prolonged the war.

3:25And most Israelis believe that he prolonged the war for political reasons. And those political reasons are that he's at the mercy of a very far right, very radical coalition. He doesn't control his coalition. He he needs them to remain in office to be prime minister. And that's one of the reasons why he prolonged the war for so long. Well, let's hear actually a piece of sound from President Trump, because after the ceasefire, Trump made a speech in the Israeli parliament, the Knesset, where he commended Netanyahu. You are a very popular man. You know why? Because you know how to win. What effect did that speech and Trump's comments have on Prime Minister Netanyahu's position at home?

4:08I think Israelis have a very sophisticated filter when they listen to someone like Trump, and they know how unpopular Netanyahu is right now. In most polls, he's got support of less than a third of the Israeli population. and Trump is giving him this soft soap treatment, but everyone also seeing at the same time how the Trump administration is making it very clear to Netanyahu that he doesn't have any freedom to manoeuvre when it comes to the ceasefire. We've seen the procession of very senior administration officials who have been in Jerusalem this week on babysitting duty. We've seen how senior American officers have been sent here to represent the administration and to be at this new sort of headquarters, which is supposed to coordinate operations in Gaza.

5:04But actually what it's doing is very closely monitoring the Israeli operations. They're making sure that they don't break out from the ceasefire's constraints. You described Netanyahu as in office, but not in power. What do you think Netanyahu has power over right now? Well, he has right now more and more limited power, because if we saw in the last three years that many parts of policy of the Israeli government are controlled by his coalition partners, whether it's domestic policy, whether it's policing and so on. At least he was in charge of Israel's diplomacy and the highest level of security decision-making.

5:43But now we see that there are American generals here in Israel right now basically dictating to the Israeli army what they can and can't do in Gaza. So even that level of power is being taken away from him. So it does seem that his share of power is constantly shrinking. If the ceasefire holds, there's still the issue of what to do with the Palestinians, what to do with the wreckage of Gaza. In your book, you wrote that Netanyahu, quote, has done little to find solutions to the conundrums of Israel's occupation of the Palestinians. And Netanyahu said there will be no Palestinian state. How much does resolving that issue, or maybe leaving it unresolved, matter to his political survival?

6:24Netanyahu's political survival has always been based on not really changing the status quo. I think the question of what happens in Gaza over the next few months is important because it's gradually clearer and clearer to his right that he's not in control of what's happening there. And I think that will continue to erode his support. You have said that you agree with accusations that Netanyahu prolonged this war for the sake of his political survival. This may sound like a naive question, but I think for some people it's unimaginable that you would allow so much death and destruction on both sides to continue just to try to remain in office or remain in power.

7:02You believe that's what's happening? Well, when you put it in that way, it does sound very cynical and very cruel. But Netanyahu, like a lot of politicians, has an incredible neck of finding what he thinks is his national interest to be exactly what seems to be also in his own political interest. Now, like I said, that is very, that's not something rare for politicians. I've yet to hear a politician say, well, this is very bad for me politically, but it's in the national interest and therefore I'll do it. It always seems to be that politicians find their preferred version of what national interest is somehow always works to their political benefit.

7:41But I think Netanyahu takes that very natural political instinct to a level that very few other politicians succeed in doing. That's Anshul Pfeffer, the Israel correspondent for The Economist and the author of Bibi, The Turbulent Life and Times of Benjamin Netanyahu. Thank you. Thank you for having me. This episode was produced by Gabriel Sanchez and Avery Keatley with audio engineering by Jimmy Keighley. It was edited by Ahmad Dahman. Our executive producer is Sammy Yenigan.

8:16It's Consider This from NPR. I'm Sasha Pfeiffer. Thank you.