As Israel heads to a crucial parliamentary election on Tuesday, incumbent Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces a challenge from key candidates including Gadi Eisenkot, Naftali Bennett, Yair Lapid, Avigdor Lieberman and Yair Golan, local media reported.

Netanyahu has positioned himself as the strongest candidate to safeguard Israel’s security and handle its international ties.

His Likud party is focusing on military successes against Hamas, Hezbollah and Iran, while critics argue that the October 7 attack exposed serious security lapses under his leadership, Israeli media outlet i24 News reported.

Former Israel Defense Forces (IDF) chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot has emerged as a prominent challenger to Netanyahu. His newly formed Yashar party combines a security-oriented agenda with pledges to restore public confidence and reinforce democratic institutions.

Furthermore, former prime ministers Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid have united to build an alliance, the Beyachad party, spanning right-wing and centrist voters. Their platform focuses on national security, integrating ultra-Orthodox men into military service and the workforce, supporting reservists and reforming the constitutional framework.

Led by Avigdor Lieberman, the Yisrael Beiteinu party combines a tough security stance with secular policies.

While the party traditionally drew support from immigrants from the former Soviet Union, it is now reaching out to a broader electorate that demands compulsory military service for all and less religious influence over public affairs.

Additionally, Yair Golan’s Democratic Party opposes annexation, favours a diplomatic resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and supports cooperation with moderate regional partners, i24 News reported.

Meanwhile, Netanyahu’s opponents are exploring possible post-election arrangements as opinion polls point to a closely contested race, according to a report in The Jerusalem Post.

“Israel’s anti-Netanyahu bloc is preparing for the possibility of forming a minority government after the upcoming elections, despite opposition from Avigdor Liberman and Naftali Bennett, while a broad agreement is emerging among the parties to replace Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana even before a coalition deal is reached,” the report stated.

“In most polls, the anti-Netanyahu camp holds an advantage over the outgoing coalition bloc, but the Zionist parties seeking political change fall short of the majority needed to form a government based on their current agreements,” it noted.

Nearly three years after the deadliest attack in Israel’s history triggered a devastating war on multiple fronts, Israelis are preparing to cast their votes in an election widely regarded as one of the most consequential in the country’s history, with implications extending well beyond the political future of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his opponents, The Times of Israel reported.

The report suggests that the Tuesday election, the first since the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, massacre, is taking place against a backdrop of deep divisions over accountability for the failures that enabled the attack, the burden of military service, and the independence of Israel’s democratic institutions and judiciary,

Iran’s Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei has stressed the need for “serious” efforts to pursue the Iranian people’s rights and ensure the payment of compensation for the damages inflicted on the country during the US-Israeli attacks.

The issues were highlighted in a meeting between the supreme leader and the country’s Judiciary Chief Gholamhossein Mohseni-Ejei, according to a statement published on the leader’s website on Saturday.

Among the issues underlined during the meeting were promoting justice, safeguarding public rights, fighting corruption and its root causes effectively, handling judicial cases promptly, precisely and decisively, enforcing judicial rulings in a timely and deterrent manner, and bringing about a “comprehensive and tangible” transformation in the country’s judicial apparatus.

The other matters included the necessity to draw up plans and make efforts to decisively fight crimes as well as to seriously pursue the restoration of the Iranian people’s rights and compensation for the material and non-material damages resulting from the “crimes perpetrated by the US-Israeli criminals,” reports Xinhua news agency.

On February 28, Israel and the United States launched joint attacks on Tehran and other Iranian cities.

Iran responded with waves of missile and drone attacks targeting Israel and US bases and assets in the region, and tightened its grip on the Strait of Hormuz.

Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump on Friday raised the prospect of renewed military strikes against Iran, claiming that the United States could seize all of the country’s oil or even take over the entire country.

“Iran is not able to do much now. And we could, if we wanted to, just take all of the oil,” Trump told reporters as he left the White House for a rally in Florida. “We could take the whole country.”

Asked about US Ambassador to the United Nations Mike Waltz saying the conflict with Iran could drag on for another year, Trump said: “We could end it very quickly … The question is, ‘Do we want to finish it off or do we just want to let it wither?'”

Later at the Florida rally, Trump suggested another military operation against Iran was possible.

“We may do another little Epic Fury,” he told attendees, referring to the large-scale US military operation against Iran launched on February 28 alongside a coordinated Israeli offensive.

Trump’s latest remarks came amid reports that the US and Israeli militaries have drawn up plans for renewed strikes against Iran after the US midterm elections. However, whether Trump will ultimately authorise another military operation remains uncertain, according to US media reports.

Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf will be unable to attend the Meeting of Speakers of the Parliaments of BRICS Member Countries in New Delhi next week due to “certain unforeseen circumstances”, the Embassy of Iran in New Delhi stated on Saturday.

The Parliament of India will host the 12th BRICS Parliamentary Forum on October 26-27 in the Central Hall of Samvidhan Sadan.

“The Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran in New Delhi wishes to inform that, due to certain unforeseen circumstances, H.E. Dr. Mohammad-Baqer Qalibaf, Speaker of the Islamic Consultative Assembly of Iran, will be unable to attend the Meeting of Speakers of the Parliaments of BRICS Member Countries in New Delhi,” read a statement issued by the Iranian Embassy on Saturday.

“It is also emphasised that the parliamentary delegation of the Islamic Republic of Iran will participate in the meeting. As one of the members of BRICS, Iran reaffirms its commitment to active and effective participation at the highest levels in the summits and meetings of this grouping,” it added.

According to the Iranian Foreign Ministry, the country’s delegation will continue its dialogue and consultations with delegations from BRICS member countries in New Delhi, with a view to expanding and deepening bilateral and multilateral cooperation, particularly in the field of parliamentary relations and cooperation.

“The Embassy of the Islamic Republic of Iran also expresses its sincere appreciation to the Government of the Republic of India for its gracious hospitality and the arrangements made to host this meeting. It wishes the Meeting of Speakers of the Parliaments of BRICS Member Countries every success and hopes that it will yield constructive outcomes towards strengthening cooperation and engagement among member countries,” the statement added.

Several global parliamentary leaders will assemble in New Delhi for the conference being hosted under India’s chairship on the theme of people-centric development.

Earlier this week, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla mentioned that the conference marks a new chapter in the history of India’s parliamentary diplomacy. It will bring together Presiding Officers and parliamentary leaders from BRICS member and partner countries, Union Ministers, Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha Harivansh, Presiding Officers of State Legislatures, Members of Parliament and other dignitaries.

The Lok Sabha Speaker stated that Prime Minister Narendra Modi would grace the event and meet the leaders of the visiting delegations.

He further stated that the conference would feature bilateral and multilateral interactions with the leaders of visiting delegations and parliamentary friendship groups. A meeting of the Secretaries of the delegations will be held on Monday to finalise the Joint Statement of the 12th BRICS Parliamentary Forum.

Highlighting the central theme of the programme, he said that the forum would deliberate on the overarching theme of ‘Strengthening Parliaments for People-Centric Development’.

He added that, building on the legacy of the BRICS Parliamentary Forum, the 12th BRICS Parliamentary Forum would facilitate consensus-based dialogue through four high-level sessions, titled Resilience: The critical role of parliaments in strengthening institutions to ensure a better future; Innovation: Promoting human-centred innovation in artificial intelligence and digital technologies through parliaments; Cooperation: Ensuring a more representative system of global governance through parliamentary cooperation; and, Sustainability: The role of parliaments in ensuring a sustainable and inclusive future for our countries.

Members of the delegations will visit the Parliament of India and also enjoy cultural visits in Delhi.