Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has not appeared in public for more than a week, since delivering a speech at Likud headquarters in the early hours of last Wednesday.
The prime minister is known to have stayed at a Tel Aviv hotel at least until Sunday, amid extensive closures nearby. His social media accounts have remained active, but his voice has not been heard.
Over the past week Netanyahu has mainly shared statements from Likud spokespeople, as well as various investigations and reports on suspected harm to election integrity in the Arab sector. Notable exceptions were a tweet of support for Shas chairman Aryeh Deri and a post that read, "From day one, our hand was outstretched toward forming a broad national government. We aim to form a broad government with our partners and with any party that wants to and does not support terrorism. I am open to a discussion on the matter."
A look at Netanyahu's X account shows that, apart from the spokespeople's statements, there was one video in his voice. Last Friday, Netanyahu shared a video of his meeting with Haim, an ultra-Orthodox young man with a disability who volunteers with the police and manages to type on a keyboard using only his nose. But the video was filmed on Monday, a day before the elections, when Netanyahu placed a note in the Western Wall.
Staying at a Tel Aviv hotel – and residents' anger
According to the known details, Netanyahu stayed at the Carlton Hotel in Tel Aviv starting on Election Day on Oct. 27. For his arrival, which had been planned in advance, restrictions on movement were imposed in the area of the promenade below the Carlton Hotel, near the marina and the Gordon Pool.
But what initially looked like an isolated security event became an ongoing nuisance for residents who visit the area every day. Cyclists, runners and pedestrians had to deal with narrow passages and crowding, as part of the public space was closed to movement.
The peak came on Saturday, when masses of people took advantage of the warm weather and went out to stroll and exercise along the seashore. The closures around the hotel created congestion and crowding in the passages that remained open, and angered residents who did not understand why that section of the promenade remained blocked for days on end.
Orit, a Tel Aviv resident who regularly passes through the area on weekends, said, "I didn't understand what was going on here. I walk through there every Saturday, and this time it was terribly crowded. I thought there was renovation work or something like that on the promenade, but then I was told that Bibi has been staying at the hotel for several days, so they had to close this whole area."
Gili, who walks in the area daily, also criticized how long the closures lasted. She said, "It's excessive. It would be one thing if he came there for a day or two, but to close off the entire area for so many days?" She also described the unusual crowding that built up there on Saturday.
According to reports, Netanyahu has spoken in recent days with all components of the right-wing bloc, and also with United Torah Judaismchairman Yaakov Asher. As of this writing, Asher's party has not decided whom to recommend to the president if anyone, though it did abstain from approving the election results at the Central Elections Committee.
Israel Hayom has reached out to the Prime Minister's Office for comment, but none had been provided so far.
