Arabic version: المعارضة الإسرائيلية تتخذ موقفاً أكثر تشدداً تجاه إيران

According to Al Jazeera, Iran has become a major issue before Israel’s October 27 national election, with opposition leaders criticising Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu while often advocating tougher policies towards Tehran.

Israel’s February military assault on Iran, launched with the United States, received broad support from Jewish Israelis and opposition parties. But a halt in hostilities announced by US President Donald Trump in June was unpopular, with the Israel Democracy Institute reporting that 65 to 70 percent of Jewish Israelis believed ending the war did not serve national security interests.

Gadi Eisenkot, leader of the new Yashar party and the election frontrunner, says the conflict remains unfinished. He has accused Netanyahu of failing to dismantle Iran’s nuclear programme, citing 440kg of highly enriched uranium that he said could quickly be turned into several nuclear devices.

Opposition leader Yair Lapid has called Netanyahu’s approach a strategic failure and said the administration in Tehran could be toppled through military escalation. Former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett has also called for Israeli military dominance in the region, describing Qatar as an enemy and Turkiye as “the new Iran”.

Despite their harder rhetoric, opposition figures have warned that Netanyahu could seek escalation before the vote for political advantage or to disrupt elections. Netanyahu said last week that he did not plan to attack Iran before the election. Opposition leaders nevertheless criticised his warnings of possible attacks as political fearmongering.