Netanyahu
Overview
Benjamin Netanyahu (베냐민 네타냐후) is an Israeli politician who has served multiple times as leader of the Likud Party and Prime Minister. He is assessed as the longest-serving prime minister in Israel's history, and has stood at the center of domestic and international politics through hardline security policies, economic liberalization, strong vigilance toward Iran's nuclear program, and a conditional approach to the Palestinian issue. Since Hamas's attack in October 2023, he has led the Gaza War and is drawing both great international attention and controversy.
Key Details
Birth and Early Career
Benjamin Netanyahu was born on October 21, 1949, in Tel Aviv. His father, Benzion Netanyahu, was a historian and Zionist activist, and the family lived in the United States and elsewhere, so he grew up in an international environment. He served in Sayeret Matkal, the special forces unit of the Israel Defense Forces, and is known to have later studied architecture and management at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the United States. His brother Yonatan Netanyahu was killed in 1976 during the Entebbe airport rescue operation, and this event had a profound influence on his political image and security narrative. In the 1980s, he became known on the international stage after serving as Israel's ambassador to the United Nations and in key positions in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Political Career and Tenure
Netanyahu became leader of Likud in 1993 and first rose to the premiership in 1996. After defeat in the 1999 election, he experienced political ups and downs, but returned to the premiership in 2009 and then held power for a long time until 2021. After the 2022 general election, he again formed a coalition and returned to the premiership, thereby setting the record as Israel's longest-serving prime minister. He has frequently used a strategy of putting security issues at the forefront to win elections, and has maintained power through coalitions with hardliners within Likud and with religious and nationalist parties.
Major Policies and Ideology
Netanyahu's political line is summarized as security-centered realism. He has emphasized Israel's military superiority, defined Iran's nuclear development as the greatest threat, and pursued both international sanctions and military deterrence. On the issue of building a Palestinian state, he has taken a conditional position premised on security conditions and demilitarization, but in actual policy he has shown a favorable attitude toward expanding settlements in the West Bank, causing conflict with the international community. Economically, he has emphasized deregulation, privatization, and fostering high-tech industries, and diplomatically, he is assessed as having led the normalization of relations with Arab countries through the Abraham Accords in 2020.
Controversies and Legal Risks
During his long tenure, Netanyahu has faced corruption allegations and legal risks several times. He has been tried on charges of bribery, fraud, and breach of trust, and he denies all charges. In 2023, he pushed for judicial reform, triggering large-scale anti-government protests and social division. After Hamas's surprise attack on October 7, 2023, criticism grew over responsibility for the security failure and over the conduct of the war, and in 2024 the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants related to the Gaza War, expanding international controversy. He is under complex political pressure between continuing the war, securing the release of hostages, and maintaining the coalition.
Recent Developments
Between 2024 and 2025, the Netanyahu government led security policy amid the Gaza War, clashes with Hezbollah in Lebanon, and the reorganization of regional order after the collapse of the Assad regime in Syria. Discussions over the Lebanon ceasefire and the ICC arrest warrants in late 2024, and over hostage releases and a ceasefire agreement in early 2025, greatly shook his political standing. Domestically, the military service obligation of ultra-Orthodox Jews, the renewed push for judicial reform, and conflicts with far-right partners in the coalition emerged as major issues, and the corruption trial is also ongoing. Externally, the tasks of maintaining relations with the United States, the possibility of normalizing relations with Saudi Arabia, and containing Iran are intertwined. As of 2025, debate continues over how to end the war, plans for postwar governance of Gaza, and the possibility of early elections, leaving him as the biggest variable in Israeli politics.
Related Topics
- [[Israel]]
- [[Likud]]
- [[Gaza War]]
- [[Hamas]]
- [[Middle East conflict]]