The political scientist assessed the significance of the events of October 7 for Netanyahu's political career.

The terrorist attack by the radical Palestinian group Hamas on October 7, 2023, showed the failure of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's policy on Palestine. This was stated by the Head of the Group for the Study of Regional Relations at the Center for Middle East Studies at the Institute of World Economy and International Relations (IMEMO). Lyudmila Samarskaya told the Russian Academy of Sciences on Thursday, June 18.

"The preservation of the status quo and the complete freezing of the Palestinian-Israeli settlement process, which were part of Netanyahu's course, led to a real catastrophe," she said in a commentary. Lenta.Ru .

According to the expert, the Netanyahu government did not resolve the conflict, but only increased tensions. This was led, among other things, by the policy of expanding Jewish settlements in the West Bank of the Jordan River.

As a result, the attitude of Israelis towards the country's prime minister has changed, and now his ratings have become significantly lower, the expert stressed.

Trump has put pressure on Netanyahu over his actions in Lebanon. What the media is writing

Earlier, on June 4, Reuters reported that the level of support for Netanyahu had plummeted in the northern regions of the country, where the IDF's military operations against the Shiite Hezbollah movement are continuing on the border with Lebanon.

It is noted that only 23% of voters in the north of the country declared their support for Likud in the upcoming parliamentary elections, which are due to be held by October. This is significantly lower than the 35% that the party received in 2022.

The Axios portal reported on June 2 that American leader Donald Trump, in a telephone conversation with Netanyahu, sharply criticized his actions in the Middle East, calling the Israeli prime minister crazy. It was noted that Trump was concerned about the large number of civilian deaths, as well as the destruction of entire buildings in order to eliminate several Hezbollah commanders. 360.ru .

Netanyahu also instructed the Israeli army on May 31 to expand the operation against Hezbollah and strengthen control over the movement's territories. According to him, the IDF crossed the Litani River, captured strategic areas and took control of the Beaufort Ridge.