Israel Stages Massive Army Drills Days Before Tight Election
(MENAFN) Israel’s military will conduct large-scale exercises across the north and center of the country on Sunday and Monday, simulating surprise attacks and air and ground infiltrations, just ahead of Tuesday’s parliamentary elections, the army announced Friday.
In a statement, the army said the drills are designed to test and sharpen its ability to defend multiple fronts and to prepare for possible escalation along the borders.
The air force and several divisions will take part, including the Northern Command’s 210th Division, the West Bank Division, and the Central Command’s 98th and 96th divisions. Troops will rehearse surprise assaults and incursions into Israeli territory by air and land, and the public should expect heavier movements of security forces and aircraft in the affected areas.
The army described the exercises as part of its annual training plan for 2026 and a continuing push to raise military proficiency and readiness. It stressed there are no concerns about a security incident. The drills fall immediately before the vote, but the army did not connect the two.
Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir announced Monday that military readiness would be raised to its highest level, soldiers’ leave restricted from Thursday, and troop deployments in the West Bank reinforced to ensure the elections proceed safely and on schedule.
Even with the army’s assurances that the exercises were planned in advance, the warnings of possible attacks, heightened readiness and leave restrictions could push security higher up the public agenda before the vote. The statements identified no specific imminent threat.
Election Race Tightens
A poll released Friday by an Israeli newspaper projected that the bloc led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would win 48 seats, down three from the same newspaper’s survey a week earlier. The Jewish opposition bloc was projected to take 54.
Neither side would reach the 61 seats needed for a majority in the 120-member Knesset.
Within Netanyahu’s bloc, the poll gave Likud 19 seats, Itamar Ben-Gvir’s Jewish Power seven, United Torah Judaism seven, Shas eight, and Bezalel Smotrich’s Religious Zionism party seven.
In the opposition bloc, Gadi Eisenkot’s Yashar party led with a projected 21 seats, followed by Naftali Bennett’s Together party with 15, Yair Golan’s Democrats with 10, and Avigdor Lieberman’s Yisrael Beiteinu with eight.
In a statement, the army said the drills are designed to test and sharpen its ability to defend multiple fronts and to prepare for possible escalation along the borders.
The air force and several divisions will take part, including the Northern Command’s 210th Division, the West Bank Division, and the Central Command’s 98th and 96th divisions. Troops will rehearse surprise assaults and incursions into Israeli territory by air and land, and the public should expect heavier movements of security forces and aircraft in the affected areas.
The army described the exercises as part of its annual training plan for 2026 and a continuing push to raise military proficiency and readiness. It stressed there are no concerns about a security incident. The drills fall immediately before the vote, but the army did not connect the two.
Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir announced Monday that military readiness would be raised to its highest level, soldiers’ leave restricted from Thursday, and troop deployments in the West Bank reinforced to ensure the elections proceed safely and on schedule.
Even with the army’s assurances that the exercises were planned in advance, the warnings of possible attacks, heightened readiness and leave restrictions could push security higher up the public agenda before the vote. The statements identified no specific imminent threat.
Election Race Tightens
A poll released Friday by an Israeli newspaper projected that the bloc led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would win 48 seats, down three from the same newspaper’s survey a week earlier. The Jewish opposition bloc was projected to take 54.
Neither side would reach the 61 seats needed for a majority in the 120-member Knesset.
Within Netanyahu’s bloc, the poll gave Likud 19 seats, Itamar Ben-Gvir’s Jewish Power seven, United Torah Judaism seven, Shas eight, and Bezalel Smotrich’s Religious Zionism party seven.
In the opposition bloc, Gadi Eisenkot’s Yashar party led with a projected 21 seats, followed by Naftali Bennett’s Together party with 15, Yair Golan’s Democrats with 10, and Avigdor Lieberman’s Yisrael Beiteinu with eight.
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