Comeback Kid Bibi

Asign of how divisive his campaign to return to power in Israel has been is evident in Republicans hailing him as “Bibi the Comeback Kid” even as US President Barack Obama makes it clear to Benjamin Netanyahu that he is still in the doghouse. Declaring that there would be no Palestinian state on his watch and railing against the Israeli Arabs who voted, Mr Netanyahu played the political theatre to perfection. He drove the wedge even deeper while attracting most right-wingers to vote for his party, Likud. Such are the paradoxes of modern global politics, much of which hinges on the principle of creating a Palestinian state, that while one section chastises his demagoguery, the other freely praises his success.

Moderates in the two-state debate over Israel and Palestine see Mr Netanyahu as a calculating politician known to be pragmatic when in power and that he may only have been posturing to ensure his political survival. They must be hoping he would mend his relations with Mr Obama.

A silver lining is already being spotted in Mr Netanyahu demonstrating a bit of his ambivalence already in declaring soon after the poll results that he would deliver security and social welfare to “all citizens of Israel, Jews and non-Jews alike”. The reading that historical US-Israel ties may have changed in a polarising, racist election campaign may be too extreme. India and Israel, in view of the close ties between Mr Netanyahu and the Indian Prime Minister, might be able to contribute positively to an entente for a common fight against terrorism.