Netanyahu attempting a coup to reverse election defeat: Opposition
Zionist regime’s prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu is seeking to overturn his election defeat by weaponizing the Shin Bet spy agency against Arab voters in an attempt to stay in power, the so-called Israeli opposition warns.
Netanyahu’s right-wing bloc secured 53 seats in the 120-member Knesset in the October 27 election, falling short of the 61 needed for a parliamentary majority, while opposition parties won 48 seats and Arab-led parties secured 19.
Rather than accept the outcome, Netanyahu has turned to the Shin Bet, whose chief, David Zini, is leading investigations into Arab voters and political leaders over claims of electoral fraud, bribery and foreign interference, the opposition has warned.
The investigations target the Arab-led Ra’am and Joint List parties, whose combined 19 seats could prove decisive in determining who forms the next cabinet.
On Tuesday, the Shin Bet arrested Middle East Eye contributor Abd Abu Shahadeh in what it described as a “security-related investigation.”
Israeli media also reported that Zini wanted Arab political leaders Ahmad Tibi, Sami Abou Shahadeh, Mansour Abbas and Ayman Odeh arrested, and questioned.
Yair Golan, leader of the opposition Democrats Party, said Netanyahu was refusing to accept defeat and using security institutions to seize power.
“Netanyahu lost. He refuses to recognize the results, and he is trying to carry out a coup and seize power by force,” Golan wrote on X.
Former Prime Minister Yair Lapid said Netanyahu was seeking “to steal the elections with the help of sleeper agents of the regime in the security establishment.”
Opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot described the developments as an “organized attempt” to sabotage the so-called Israeli democracy through incitement against elected officials and the dismantling of law enforcement agencies.
Haaretz journalist Amos Harel wrote that Netanyahu and his allies were driving Israel into “the most critical constitutional crisis in its history”, describing their actions as a “regime coup.”
Ynet journalist Ronen Bergman said Israel was “in the midst of a coup attempt”, while Calcalist journalist Moshe Gorali warned that refusing to recognize the election results represented a significant escalation.
The Central Elections Committee submitted the official results to President Isaac Herzog on Wednesday, dismissing claims of widespread electoral fraud.
Haaretz reported that more than 1,000 complaints about election fraud had been examined, with none found credible.
A source familiar with the Shin Bet investigations told Ynet that the inquiries lacked basic evidence, warning that questioning a Knesset member required more than speculation.
A Channel 13 source said Zini was “throwing out names without evidence and echoing Likud’s talking points.”