Articles

Everything you need to know about the structure and responsibilities of Israel's Knesset (parliament) and how national elections work in Israel.

On April 26, 2026, the High Court of Justice ordered the government to take measures to enforce the draft of ultra-Orthodox men into the IDF. This includes both the withholding of certain state benefits and the imposition of criminal proceedings for draft evaders.

Former Prime Ministers Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid announced a joint run of the "Bennett 2026" and Yesh Atid parties in the 2026 election. It is certainly possible that we will see additional joint runs like these ahead of the elections, for example, within the center bloc, the right-wing bloc, and among the Arab parties. The assumption is that such a run would benefit the parties and the bloc. But is this assumption correct?

Hungary's incoming prime minister declared his intention to institute term limits for the prime minister – an exceptional move for a parliament. While similar ideas have been proposed in Israel, term limits are not a substitute for strong democratic institutions based on oversight and checks and balances.

Nadav Dagan (PhD), Senior Researcher at the Israel Democracy Institute and Research Fellow at the Minerva Center (University of Haifa), together with Daphne Benvenisty, a researcher at the Israel Democracy Institute, join the Minerva Center for the Rule of Law under Extreme Conditions at the University of Haifa, for a seminar where they present findings from their comparative study on Autocratization and States of Emergency. Their study presents a show a clear link between the use of 'states of emergency' and accelerated erosion or dismantling of democracy, and autocratic consolidation.

On Wednesday, April 15, 2026, the High Court of Justice heard petitions filed against the continuation of MK Itamar Ben-Gvir’s term as minister of national security, against the background of allegations of his improper involvement in the activities of the Israel Police and violations of its professional independence. The hearing was an expanded panel of nine justices.

Against the backdrop of the bills currently under consideration in the Knesset, which are intended to split the role of the Attorney General, IDI experts explain what is at stake.

For years, Orbán’s leadership model served as proof of concept for populist leaders that liberal democracy could be dismantled gradually, legally, and with public support. His defeat could have an impact far beyond the borders of Hungary.

For the first time in history, it is possible to turn an old photograph into a living video and to generate a voice that sounds exactly like a lost loved one. If digital tools can reconstruct and fill in our memories, they are also capable of rewriting them.

The discourse around the impact of AI on the labor market tends to be centered on forecasts of how many jobs will be lost due to AI. The future is indeed uncertain, but this debate misses the mark. We now have a clearer view of what is already happening in Israel's labor market (as of 2025) that should shift the debate towards how to prepare and equip the labor market and education system for the changes that are unfolding. The answer to preparedness lies in human capital and a holistic economic approach.

49% of Jewish Israelis say Israel's strategic and security situation is better than before the war with Iran, while among Arabs, 49% say it is worse. 92% of Jews gave the IDF a high rating on their management of the war; only 38% gave the government high ratings. Among Arabs, 34.5% gave the IDF high ratings; only 10% gave the government high ratings.

A "special state of emergency" has been applied over the years due to security crises, the COVID pandemic, and now the war with Iran. How does this affect the regulation of the courts and the power of the Minister of Justice?

Over three-quarters of the Jewish public supports continuing the war, while among Arabs, only 19% support it – this marks a decline in both publics since the first week of the war. Among both Jews and Arabs, Operation Roaring Lion has improved assessments of the level of solidarity in Israeli society as a whole. Both Jews and Arabs think that Iran’s resilience has proven to be somewhat stronger or much stronger than anticipated by the operation’s planners.

A bill seeking to expand the powers of religious courts and to allow them to arbitrate in civil disputes passed into law. What does the law say, what are the implications for fundamental rights, and is it possible to ensure that arbitration is entered into voluntarily by all parties?

In Haredi society, the question of whether or not to follow IDF Home Front Command instructions can sometimes be far from straightforward. The Haredi leadership needs to speak up clearly and uniformly and call for full obedience to these instructions.

The decision for Knesset to advance highly controversial legislation during the war with Iran, and under a special home front situation, risks undermining proper legislative processes, impeding public debate on the issues, and hindering the ability of elected officials to address urgent war-related matters.

The cyberattacks we have seen since the beginning of the conflict with Iran are a reminder that the digital front of the war is not marginal. Now is the time to implement cyber regulations that can help protect the business community and civilian infrastructure. 

The Pardons Department in the Ministry of Justice writes that they cannot determine the President of the State has the authority to pardon Prime Minister Netanyahu, nor can they recommend the extraordinary and far-reaching step of doing so.

A majority of Jews (82%) and just over one-half of Arabs (52%) think that the interests of the US and Israel are very strongly or fairly strongly aligned in the joint operation in Iran. Around 70% of Jews think that Iran’s nuclear project and the threat of ballistic missiles can be eliminated. A smaller, though still large, share (61%) believes that the regime of the ayatollahs can be overthrown; Arabs are more pessimistic - just over a quarter, but less than a third, think that each of these goals can be achieved.

The draft exemption bill has been “set aside” for now, and it appears increasingly unlikely that the (non-)conscription law will be finalized in the current Knesset. This explainer reviews the history of the bill, explains the manner in which the existing law is expected to be enforced, and assesses the chances of the government passing an exemption law after the war is over but before the upcoming election. 

Just before the launch of the war, 53% of Jews and 29% of Arabs supported direct military involvement with the US in an attack against Iran, while 41% of Jews and 58.5% of Arabs supported responding only in the event of a direct Iranian attack against Israel. After Operation Roaring Lion was launched, in close coordination with the US, the overwhelming majority of Jews (93%) and minority of Arabs (26%) supported it.

The impressive improvement in women's representation in the Knesset that was seen between 1999 and 2015 has halted in the past decade. This is true in government as well, where the representation of women is actually regressing rather than improving compared to the previous government, and is particularly low compared to other democracies.

What are the implications of declaring a “special home front situation,” and what powers does such a declaration confer to Israeli authorities? What rights do citizens have in areas regarding which such a declaration has been made? What’s the difference between a “special home front situation” and the ongoing “emergency situation” that has long been in force in Israel? This article explains these issues, and more.