Israel’s leading newspaper Haaretz has published a scathing assessment of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s political legacy. The newspaper stated that Netanyahu will be remembered as “the worst prime minister in the country’s history” following the Hamas attack on October 7, 2023, and the subsequent economic collapse.
Haaretz emphasized that the image Netanyahu had built over years was shattered on October 7, and that the event, which occurred under his watch, was a defeat. It said Israelis are living through the most dangerous security period for the last two generations.
The newspaper also drew attention to the economic dimension, noting that the unprecedented increase in the defence budget, tax hikes, cuts to public services and the growing debt burden will have negative effects lasting years. “History will write Netanyahu down as the worst prime minister the country has ever seen,” the report said.
Hamas’s armed wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, launched a large-scale attack on October 7, 2023, which it called “Al-Aqsa Flood,” citing it as a response to “violations against Palestinians and holy sites, foremost among them Al-Aqsa Mosque.” Israel announced that 1,200 people were killed and 5,132 wounded in the attacks.
Tens of thousands of Palestinians lost their lives in Israel’s retaliatory operations against Gaza. Israeli officials describe October 7 as “the greatest intelligence and military failure in the country’s history.”
Haaretz’s assessment is seen as a reflection of the growing domestic criticism of the Netanyahu government.
