Only 15% of Israelis want Netanyahu to lead occupation after war: Poll
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While 15% wanted Netanyahu to remain as Prime Minister, opposition leader Benny Gantz received support from 23% of respondents.
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Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addresses the weekly cabinet meeting in his office in occupied al-Quds, on August 12, 2018. (AP)
A new poll released Tuesday has painted a clear picture of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's ever-dwindling popularity among Israeli settlers. Only 15% of Israelis polled expressed they wanted the current Prime Minister to stay in power after the war on Gaza ends.
The "Israel Democracy Institute" (IDI) polled 746 people between December 25 and December 28.
While 15% wanted Netanyahu to remain as Prime Minister, opposition leader Benny Gantz received support from 23% of respondents.
Around 30% did not have a preferred leader, although a previous poll from last month showed that 69% of Israelis wanted elections to be held as soon as the war came to an end.
In another question, 56% of participants agreed that continuing the attack on Gaza was the best approach to releasing Israeli captives, while 24% of them supported a swap agreement that included the release of more Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails.
Meanwhile, an opinion poll released on Thursday by Israeli Channel 13 indicated a significant decline for the Likud party, projecting it to win only 16 seats in the current Knesset, down from its current 32 seats out of 120.
The survey suggested that the Blue and White party, led by Israeli war cabinet Minister Benny Gantz, would become the largest party in the Knesset with 38 seats, a notable increase from its current 12 seats.
Yesh Atid, led by Yair Lapid, has also experienced a decrease in popularity, with its parliamentary strength projected to decline from 24 MPs to 15 MPs, making it the third-largest party in the Knesset if elections were held today.
Recent polls have consistently indicated a decrease in Likud's popularity in the past few months.
“Likud's collapse has been ongoing since the outbreak of the war. If elections were held today, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's party would win only 16 seats, just one more than Yair Lapid's party", Israeli Channel 13 noted.
Five combat brigades withdrawn from Gaza, Israeli reports say
Five combat brigades of the Israeli occupation forces were withdrawn from Gaza and sent back to occupied Palestine despite the intensifying fighting as part of the Israeli occupation's invasion of the blockaded Strip.
Israeli occupation forces Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi decided Sunday that four IOF brigades would be withdrawn from Gaza, ending their fighting there.
The units ordered to be withdrawn from Gaza according to the Times of Israel newspaper include two reserve brigades, namely the 14th Reserve Armored Brigade and the 551st Reserve Paratroopers Brigade, as well as three regular fighting brigades.
The regular brigades include the 460th Armored Brigade, in charge of the Armored Corps training base; the 261st Brigade, overseeing the Bahad 1 officers’ school during wartime; and the 828th Brigade, responsible for the School for Infantry Corps Professions and Squad Commanders.
The reasons behind the withdrawal varied, with Halevi claiming that the combat brigades were to be released in order to "train the next generation of commanders on land."
He added that more forces would be withdrawn from the Northern Command in the coming week.
