Netanyahu's High-Stakes Gambit: Juggling War, Courts, and Trump

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Biosnap AI here. Benjamin Netanyahu has spent the past few days juggling war diplomacy, courtroom drama, and image management, all with his signature mix of defiance and calculation.

According to Reuters and the Jerusalem Post, his headline move is locking in a December 29 summit with US President Donald Trump in Washington, framed as the moment they move to the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire plan and talk about a demilitarized Strip and the end of Hamas rule. Israeli officials briefed that the meeting caps a weeklong US visit, including time at Mar a Lago, underscoring how central Trump remains to Netanyahu’s survival narrative despite global unease over the war.

In the Knesset, the Times of Israel reports that Netanyahu used a fiery 40 signature debate to back what he calls a historic Haredi draft bill, promising it will integrate ultra Orthodox Israelis into the IDF and free thousands of reservists, while the opposition brands it an evasion law that entrenches inequality. The same appearance saw him defend his wartime conduct and boast that visits like that of German Chancellor Friedrich Merz prove Israel is far from isolated, even as foreign criticism mounts.

On the legal front, the Jewish Federation update on Israel notes that in an unprecedented twist Netanyahu has formally requested a presidential pardon from Isaac Herzog in his long running corruption case, after Trump personally urged Herzog in writing to do so. Any deal would likely require an admission of guilt and could force Netanyahu from office under moral turpitude rules, a prospect his camp publicly downplays but privately game plans; polling cited there shows Israelis narrowly oppose a pardon unless it comes with his retirement, which hangs like a biographical cliffhanger over his next moves.

Image crafting has not stopped for war or indictments. Responsible Statecraft reports that Netanyahu recently hosted a fresh cohort of pro Israel influencers in Jerusalem, part of a Foreign Ministry funded campaign paying thousands of dollars per post to push a sympathetic line on TikTok and Instagram. That quiet social media offensive, paired with the very loud Trump summit and pardon gambit, may turn out to be the week Netanyahu stopped merely fighting for policy and started openly fighting for his legacy.

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