Netanyahu bet on Trump – but both lost

What the report says

Al Jazeera reports that both Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump emerged weakened after parallel election losses, with Israel’s right-wing bloc falling short in the October 27 parliamentary race and Trump’s Republican Party losing control of both chambers of Congress in the US midterms. The article says Netanyahu had closely aligned himself with Trump and portrayed their partnership as politically valuable, even as the two leaders backed a joint military campaign against Iran earlier in the year that triggered Iranian retaliation and heightened fears of wider regional conflict.

According to the report, Israeli politics are now focused on coalition negotiations while the country also weighs the implications of a possible shift in Washington. The piece cites polling and analysts who argue that the Iran war and US support for Israel became liabilities for many American voters, especially as the costs of the conflict fed into broader concerns about prices and foreign policy. It also notes that the US remains Israel’s main diplomatic and military backer, including annual military assistance and UN Security Council support, though those ties are increasingly contentious in American domestic politics.

The article says Netanyahu has challenged the credibility of his own election setback and has used rhetoric similar to Trump’s past response to defeat. At the same time, Israeli critics and former officials quoted by Al Jazeera describe the moment as a potential turning point in US-Israel relations, with uncertainty over whether Trump will escalate tensions with Iran or seek a deal that could calm political pressure at home.