English transcript

The Iran war was meant to deliver a defining victory over Tehran that would

secure Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's place in history. More than

six weeks into the conflict he has been unable to translate military might into

political gain. That's according to surveys cited by Nimrod Neer, a political

psychologist at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

The vast majority of Israelis believe that this war is a failure. Only 10% perceive it as a

significant success versus 30% over 30% that perceives it as a complete failure.

Moreover, a vast majority of Israelis think that Israel will be weakened after

this war and less than 40% say that if they would know in advance that this

would be a position after a month and a half of war they would support it.

Despite Israel's overwhelming firepower, its enemies across every front have been

weakened but not neutralized. Even after heavy Israeli-U.S. airstrikes and the

loss of senior leaders, Iran remains defiant. Tehran's nuclear stockpiles

endure. Its missile capability is now proven and it holds sway over the

Strait of Hormuz, the artery for a fifth of global oil flows. Palestinian Islamist

militant group Hamas has not been disarmed or dismantled in Gaza and Iran-

backed Hezbollah continues to fire rockets in northern Israel from Lebanon.

However, Netanyahu is pressing ahead. The campaign is not over yet but we can

clearly state that we have historic achievements. I want to remind you where

we were. Iran tried to strangle us. Hamas in Gaza, Hezbollah in Lebanon, Assad

regime in Syria, the militia in Iraq, the Houthis in Yemen, Iran itself. They wanted

to strangle us and we strangled them. They threatened us with destruction and

now they are fighting to survive. We affected them and we have more to do.

Political analysts in the region say Netanyahu is paying a political price

for a military campaign launched with US President Donald Trump that has failed

to deliver a decisive outcome. Netanyahu's approval ratings have slipped

and with legislative elections due by late October, the political risks he

faces are rising. Seventy percent of the Israeli public does not believe that the

public receives a full and real picture of the situation in Iran. Less than 15

percent believe Netanyahu when he says that Iran is weaker than ever and

there's a complete distrust even among poor government loyalists in whatever

the political and security echelon are conveying and we haven't seen such

figures since October 7th. Netanyahu's office did not respond to a Reuters

request for comment. The Prime Minister has criticized those who he said were

diminishing Israel's achievements in Iran, saying Israel has emerged stronger

and Iran weaker.