Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is fighting for his political survival with voting underway in Israel’s second election in five months, says Mehrzad Boroujerdi, an internationally recognized expert on Iran and Middle Eastern politics at Virginia Tech.
The election comes after Mr. Netanyahu, who faces possible indictment on accusations of bribery and fraud, failed to stitch together a coalition government.
Quoting Boroujerdi
“Having to hold an unprecedented second parliamentary election in a few months is a testimony to the deep political cleavage in Israeli politics,” says Boroujerdi. “Netanyahu may still end up winning the election but this does not mean that the task of governing will become any easier starting tomorrow.”
“The horse trading between the larger and smaller parties makes for precarious politics and a coalition government that is not going to be too stable regardless of who comes out on top.”
About Boroujerdi
An internationally recognized expert on Iran and Middle Eastern politics, Mehrzad Boroujerdi is the director of Virginia Tech’s School of Public and International Affairs in the College of Architecture and Urban Studies. Boroujerdi has written and contributed to a number of books on Iranian society and politics, including “Iranian Intellectuals and the West: The Tormented Triumph of Nativism” (Syracuse University Press, 1996) and “Postrevolutionary Iran: A Political Handbook” (Syracuse University Press, 2018).
He has provided insight and commentary to a number national and international media outlets, including the Associated Press, LA Times, NPR, New York Times, Reuters, Spiegel, and Washington Post, and is a regular commentator on a number of Persian broadcasting networks.
Interview
To secure an interview with Boroujerdi, contact Shannon Andrea in the media relations office at sandrea@vt.edu or 703-399-9494.
Original post https://alertarticles.info
