Current sectionIsrael NewsIsrael Elections 2026Analysis The prime minister is looking for a statesmanlike counterweight to rebellious figures like Katz, Levin and Gotliv - who are expected to dominate the party's primaries. Yet, his base's fierce anti-establishment rhetoric is driving away the very moderate figures he hopes to attractShare to FacebookShare to XArticle printing is available to subscribers onlyPrint in a simple, ad-free formatSubscribeComments: Zen reading is available to subscribers onlyAd-free and in a comfortable reading formatSubscribeRavit Hecht06:00 AM • August 05 2026 IDTAnyone who expects that Defense Minister Israel Katz will pay some kind of political price after his involvement in yet another grotesque incident – even if the latest one surpasses in quality all the ones that preceded it – is likely to be disappointed.Loading...Click the alert icon to follow topics:LikudMoshe KahlonIsraeli electionsBenjamin NetanyahuYariv LevinEli CohenIsrael KatzCommentsLoading...In the NewsIn the News: Live UpdatesGaza Board of PeaceElbit-UAEIsrael KatzCeuta Michigan PrimaryElection PollsHaQuizHaaretz PodcastNetanyahu Struggles to Balance Likud's Extremist Base With the Moderate RightNetanyahu Says No Israeli Withdrawal From Gaza Until Hamas Completely DisarmedNearly 2,000 Antisemitism Incidents Recorded Across U.K. in First Half of YearNetanyahu Convinced Trump's Board of Peace to Rewrite Its Gaza Deal With HamasIsrael Must End the Siege and Say Yes to a Gaza DealRemembering and rebuilding two years laterICYMIThis Israeli ultra-Orthodox Feminist Activist Has a Warning for U.S. JewsNetanyahu Says Israel Has 'Special Forces' Ready if He's Arrested on NY VisitHow Israel's Elbit Armed the United Arab Emirates'I Tried, I Got Crushed by AIPAC': Andy Levin Is All-in for El-SayedDozens of IDF Soldiers Desert Sde Teiman Base in Protest of CommanderIt's No Wonder Israelis Want War. Violence Has Become a Source of Joy