Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday said he intends to run in elections scheduled for later this year, as he faces domestic criticism over his wartime leadership.
Netanyahu, who is Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, has led his country through three years of war on multiple interconnected fronts and is currently on trial for corruption.
In recent months, he has come under mounting fire from opposition leaders who accuse him of failing to achieve the war aims he set out following Hamas’ October 2023 attack on Israel.
“I am going to run in the elections and intend to win,” the veteran leader said in a televised press conference, his first comments after Washington and Tehran agreed to a deal to end the war sparked by US-Israeli strikes on Iran in late February.
On Monday, Israeli figures across the political spectrum slammed the US-Iran agreement, saying it would not protect their country’s interests.
Naftali Bennett, a former prime minister and leading contender in the coming election, said it marked a “dangerous turn for Israel’s security”.
