Gatekeepers in Israel

In his panic, as investigations around his corruption were closing in, Israel’s Premier Netanyahu decided to call an early election. It is thought that his plan is to win the election (not at all unlikely, despite all), and immediately pass a law which prevents prosecuting prime ministers, whilst they are in office.

The roulette table – as Netanyahu sees it – has only two pockets: prime minister’s office and jail.

To avoid going to jail, he will do almost anything. The big question is how narrow he and his family (who are active players in Netanyahu’s shenanigans) will define “almost”.

Hate speech and racist incitement have always come naturally to Israel’s prime minister. His latest ploy is an agreement to collaborate with ultra-extremist Jewish orthodox supremacists, Jewish Power (Otzmah Jehudit). These promoters of ethnic cleansing and right-wing terrorism are Netanyahu’s chosen bedfellows. This outrageous move has for the first time in Israel’s history brought about condemnation from almost the whole bandwidth of Jewish institutions in the USA.

Netanyahu’s predecessor, Olmert, was hoping to avoid jail (yes, he too was indicted, found guilty and jailed for corruption) by promoting a peace deal. Will Netanyahu try to win the coming (April 9^th) elections through war? 

Netanyahu’s track record shows that he is not trigger-happy when it comes to military actions. Will that still guide him when he sees a jail cell looming? War as a get-out-of-jail-card?

And critically, how strong are Israel’s democratic institutions (which Netanyahu’s government has systematically been eroding)? Will the gatekeepers prevent any panic-driven moves on Netanyahu’s part?