Netanyahu, who celebrates his 76th birthday on Tuesday, is the longest-serving prime minister in Israel's history. He has been in office on and off for over 18 years.
The Israeli prime minister leads the right-wing Likud party. In the last elections in November 2022, it received 32 seats and, together with religious and radical nationalist groups, formed the most right-wing cabinet in Israel's history.
The rise and fall of the Israeli government's ratings
The popularity of Netanyahu and the entire government plummeted after Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023. It later stabilized, increasing during subsequent wars with Lebanese Hezbollah in the fall of 2024 and Iran in June 2025. Both conflicts were viewed by most Israelis as successes.
The prime minister's ratings went up again after the conclusion of a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, which has been in force since October 10, and the release of the last living hostages held by Hamas.
According to a survey published on Thursday by the “Maariv” daily, the current coalition could count on 52 seats in the 120-seat parliament after the elections. A Times of Israel poll from the same day gave it 59 seats, a close majority. Both saw an increase in support for the coalition led by Netanyahu.
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Netanyahu's rule so far has been accompanied by mass demonstrations by his opponents. Even before the war, the judicial reform proposed by the coalition sparked the largest protests in Israel's history. During the conflict, mass demonstrations of thousands of people took place for the release of the hostages. Many of their participants accused the Prime Minister of politicizing the war and dragging it out at the expense of the lives of the kidnapped.
Netanyahu on the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip
Netanyahu, in an interview with Channel 14 on Saturday, also declared that the war will end only when the provisions of US President Donald Trump's peace plan are fully implemented.
He emphasized that the main point is for Hamas to return the remains of the killed hostages and disarm this group.
By Monday, the group was supposed to hand over the bodies of 28 abductees, but so far it has returned the remains of 12 people, the identities of two of which have not yet been confirmed.
The issue of body donation has caused new tensions. Israeli authorities accuse Hamas of not handing over more bodies, even though it knows their location. Hamas says it wants to return the remains but is having technical difficulties recovering them.
Negotiations on the second part of the agreement have not yet started. It assumes, among others: disarmament of Hamas, which is also one of Israel's main demands. Representatives of the Palestinian group have repeatedly declared that they will not lay down their weapons.
Netanyahu told Channel 14 that if Hamas did not agree to disarm, it would be forced to do so.
