JERUSALEM

A recent poll found that only 31% of Israelis see Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as the most suitable figure for the premiership. 

Israeli daily Maariv reported on the survey results published Friday, stating that 31% of respondents "believe that Netanyahu is the most suitable for the premiership, while 50% said that the War Cabinet Member Benny Gantz is more suitable for the position."

According to the survey, 19% did not have a specific answer on the matter, the newspaper reported.

The Lazar Institute poll, done on a random sample of 512 Israelis with an estimated error rate of 4.3%, revealed that if elections were to be held that day, Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party would lose roughly half its current 39 seats in the Knesset, the country's parliament.

Meanwhile the National Unity Party, led by Gantz, would triple its seats from its current 12, with the opposition securing a total of 71 against 44 held by parties supporting the government.

The coalition supporting Netanyahu includes his Likud party, as well as the Shas, Yahadut Ha Torah (United Torah Judaism), Jewish Power, and Religious Zionism parties.

Parties opposing Netanyahu's government includes the Unity Party, Yesh Atid, Israel Our Home, Meretz, and the United Arab List.

Forming a government in Israel requires obtaining the confidence of at least 61 members of the Knesset.

Disagreements within the Israeli government are escalating between ministers supporting Netanyahu's policies on the country's onslaught on Gaza and others trying to push for a deal to ensure the return of hostages held by Palestinian group Hamas in the enclave.

Israel has launched relentless air and ground attacks on the GazaStrip since a cross-border attack by Hamas which Tel Aviv says killed 1,200 people.

At least 24,762 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly women and children, and 62,108 injured, according to Palestinian health authorities.

The Israeli offensive has left 85% of Gaza’s population internally displaced amid acute shortages of food, clean water and medicine, while 60% of the enclave’s infrastructure was damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

On Wednesday evening, Israeli broadcaster Channel 13 said a number of unnamed Israeli Cabinet ministers "outlined in recent days the broad lines of a proposal that could ultimately lead to a deal to release the Israeli detainees held by Hamas," but Netanyahu insisted on his stance and rejected this move in the end, due to Hamas' demand for a cease-fire.

The left-wing Israeli Labor Party announced Wednesday evening that it would present a proposal to the Knesset to withdraw confidence from Netanyahu's government for its failure to recover the hostages in Gaza.

In a news conference in Tel Aviv Thursday, Netanyahu rejected any calls for early elections, currently scheduled for 2026.

Israel claims that Hamas has been holding around 136 Israelis in Gaza since Oct. 7, 2023, while Hamas demands a cease-fire in Gaza and the release of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli prisons in exchange for releasing Israeli hostages in its custody.

*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala