# Palestine weekly: Israeli politicians compete to look toughest before election

https://mins.news/en/item/78482

- Al Jazeera, 2026-09-29 10:50 UTC
- Politics
- Original: https://www.aljazeera.com/features/2026/9/29/palestine-weekly-israeli-politicians-vie-to-look-toughest-before-election?traffic_source=rss

> As Israel’s October 27 election approaches, parties and candidates are maneuvering for voters. Ministers turned the launch of an illegal West Bank settlement into a campaign event, while Netanyahu spoke defiantly at the UN. Ben-Gvir threatened a jailed Hamas figure, and Smotrich urged the army to “go to war” in the occupied West Bank. Settlement expansion, demolitions, closures and settler worship at Al-Aqsa have intensified tensions.

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