Netanyahu faces growing pressure as US-Israel ties come under strain
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s campaign posters, showing him alongside US President Donald Trump and images of warplanes attacking Iran, remain on public buses across Israel. But the political developments in both countries have raised fresh questions about the future of their alliance.
A week after an inconclusive Israeli election, US voters delivered a setback to Trump and elected a Congress led by Democrats who want a tougher approach to Israel on issues including Iran, Gaza and settler violence in the occupied West Bank.
The results have prompted observers to describe a possible turning point in relations, with Israel facing uncertainty over whether it can continue to rely on support from its most powerful ally.
“This is a new era. The confluence of the Gaza war and the war with Iran have really changed how mainstream Americans – not people particularly concerned with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict – see Israel,” said Yael Sternhell, a United States expert at Tel Aviv University.
Vice President JD Vance, discussing the reasons behind the Republicans’ poor performance, listed four ways to win voters back. These included ending the Iran war and changing “our relationship with Israel”.
Trump also linked the future of US military assistance to the political mood at home. On Tuesday, he said he had agreed with Netanyahu to end the $3.8 billion in annual US military aid to Israel by the end of this year.
Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, had actively sought Trump’s endorsement while acknowledging that his country was becoming increasingly isolated.
In the final days of the campaign, he suggested Israel could turn to cryptocurrencies to bypass international sanctions that he expected to intensify. Netanyahu has not commented on the US election results or Trump’s remarks about military aid.
Amit Segal, a journalist known for his close ties to Netanyahu, described the political situation in the United States as a “catastrophe” for Israel.
Can Eisenkot restore ties?
Opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot, who is seeking to form a coalition to remove Netanyahu from power, has presented himself as someone capable of repairing relations with Washington.
In a statement in English, the former military chief said he believed in “liberal values” and wanted to work “closely and constructively” with Trump.
Yair Golan, the main left-wing leader in Eisenkot’s bloc, called for Israel to restore a bipartisan approach to relations with the United States. He accused Netanyahu of promoting a “destructive Israeli narrative of eternal war and authoritarian rule”.
Netanyahu has often highlighted his confrontations with Democratic presidents, including Barack Obama. A decade ago, he openly aligned himself with Republicans to oppose Obama’s diplomacy with Iran.
“Netanyahu certainly rubs Democrats the wrong way and has made every effort to alienate them,” Sternhell said.
However, she said Eisenkot would need more than a different approach to Trump to secure a softer position from the new Congress. He would also have to introduce new policies.
Sternhell said Eisenkot could find public support in Israel for taking action against extremist settlers accused of attacking Palestinians in the occupied West Bank.
However, Israel has shifted to the right, and the Gaza war initially received broad public support.
Criticism of Israel widens
The new Congress will include progressive Democrats such as Abdul El-Sayed, the first Muslim elected to the Senate, who has described the devastation in Gaza as genocide, a claim Israel rejects.
Netanyahu had placed a bet not only on the Republican Party but also personally on Trump, said Eli Kowaz, senior policy director at the Economic Cooperation Foundation, an Israeli think tank that supports a two-state solution with the Palestinians.
“These results show that bet had an expiry date,” Kowaz said, adding that concerns about the relationship with the United States now extend beyond the Democratic Party.
Israel has a major domestic arms industry and retains a military advantage against non-state groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah, said Ehud Eilam, a former researcher for Israel’s defence ministry.
But without US assistance, Israel could have to rely more heavily on cheaper artillery and less sophisticated bombs, potentially increasing the risk of civilian casualties and further fuelling international criticism, he said.
Israel could adapt to losing some or even all US military aid, but the shift would be difficult and could force the country to consider major loans or tax increases, Eilam said.
Kowaz said Eisenkot was seeking to demonstrate an interest in regional stability and strategic agreements rather than an indefinite state of war.