Last week may have lacked the traditional October Surprise that Americans usually expect in the final weeks of a presidential campaign, but over on the far side of the Atlantic and across the Mediterranean, there was no such luck in Israel.
From infighting within World Likud, to a budget cut of 1 billion shekels for the rebuilding of Gaza Envelope communities, and even a Likud MK having to withdraw legislation he introduced to bar anyone with a terror conviction from serving in the Knesset after realizing the bill would ban National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, the news from Israel felt like an avalanche of awful with no end in sight.
The week started with the Knesset back in session after a long recess that should remain a mark of shame for the most right-wing coalition in history, one that did not see it as cheshbon nefesh to work through the holidays during Israel's longest and most difficult war in the 21st century, while 101 hostages are held in Gaza for nearly 400 days, while IDF soldiers are serving hundreds of days on reserve duty, leaving behind crumbling businesses and exhausted families on the brink.
On the first day back, the governing coalition led with a slew of legislation that had nothing to do with the war effort, that did not address the difficult issues facing the families of reservists, the mental health of evacuated Israelis who have been internally-displaced for over a year, or the besieged economy which has faced five credit rating reductions since Benjamin Netanyahu returned to power in 2022.
Instead, we were treated to a display of callousness, of the hardened heart of Likud MK David Bitan, who shamelessly told the aunt of Carmel Gat z"l to cut her remarks short.
Instead of focusing on the issues vital to Israel's ongoing war efforts, Israelis were treated to a new attempt to depress the Arab vote with legislation making it significantly easier for the coalition to disqualify Arab parties in future elections.
Meanwhile, National Security Minister Ben-Gvir continued his flagrant disregard for the rule of law by once again threatening the attorney general, who had the audacity to remind his chief of police that he, too, had to obey the law.
And, while the IDF ended the month with 62 soldiers killed in combat, we learned that not only was an aide in the prime minister's office under arrest for leaking documents to the press that were meant to torpedo a hostage deal, but that the security establishment had stopped transmitting sensitive documents electronically entirely because it could not trust Israel's top political echelon to not leak classified intelligence.
Sadly, this is all just the tip of the iceberg.
See you next week.
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