Israel’s overlapping crises

Israel is facing a combination of deep political turmoil and the potential for a dramatic escalation in violence in the West Bank and elsewhere. The country’s new government, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, has pursued a judicial overhaul which has deeply divided Israelis, sparking months of mass demonstrations throughout the country. Meanwhile, violence has escalated between Israelis and Palestinians, threatening to erupt into a full-scale conflict, with signs of Lebanese involvement, for the first time in years.

On March 29, the Center for Middle East Policy (CMEP) at Brookings hosted a briefing on the present political and security crises in Israel. CMEP Director and Senior Fellow Natan Sachs discussed the latest events with two of Israel’s most respected journalists, Ilana Dayan, anchorperson for “Uvda” (“Fact”) on Channel 12 in Israel, and Amos Harel, defense analyst and military correspondent for Haaretz and Brookings nonresident senior fellow, plus Nonresident Senior Fellow Shibley Telhami, Anwar Sadat professor for peace and development at the University of Maryland.

Viewers submitted questions by emailing [email protected] or by joining the conversation on Twitter with #IsraelinCrisis.