Security fears weigh on Netanyahu’s campaign ahead of Israel vote

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is weeks from a tightly contested election, campaigning on the defeat of Hamas and Hezbollah and the sidelining of Iran's leadership since the Oct. 7, 2023 attack.

But reports that the UAE and Egypt warned him before the attack, and his denial of informing security services, have given rival Gadi Eisenkot and others an opening to demand a formal inquiry, which the government has resisted.

A foiled attack aboard a flydubai flight compounded the pressure, prompting Netanyahu to order a security review even as commentators asked whether that incident revealed its own failures.

Analysts say the race now hinges less on Netanyahu's record of retaliation than on whether voters still trust him to have prevented the attack in the first place.

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