Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attacked the “deep state” in his country and in the United States on Wednesday, accusing “leftists” of weaponizing the justice system against democratically elected leaders.
“In America and in Israel, when a strong right wing leader wins an election, the leftist deep state weaponizes the justice system to thwart the people’s will,” Netanyahu stated.
“They won’t win in either place,” he added.
Netanyahu’s comments came amid increasing tensions between the premier’s right-wing coalition and Gali Baharav-Miara, the Israeli attorney general, whom the government is seeking for acting as “the long arm of the government’s opponents.”
Earlier on Wednesday, the government voted to re-appoint Itamar Ben-Gvir and other members of the right-wing Otzma Yehudit Party to ministerial positions that they left in January in protest of the ceasefire with Hamas.
The government did so despite Baharav-Miara‘s repeated insistence that the move was illegal due to ongoing proceedings at Israel’s High Court of Justice.
Netanyahu accused media outlets of “constantly lying to the public in the service of and in full cooperation with the deep state,” during a debate in the Knesset on March 3.
“The media are not news channels. They are fake channels,” the prime minister charged, during a 40-signature debate, which the opposition can call on a monthly basis and which he is obliged to attend.
“It does not work anymore,” Netanyahu stated. “I will tell you what else does not work. We are seeing wonderful unity among the majority of the people. We see a belief in the message that together, we will win.”
“The people will not be fooled. Most people see everything happening here,” he added. “The cooperation between the deep state and the media did not succeed in the U.S. and will not succeed here.”
The term “deep state” is typically used to refer to powerful bureaucracies, especially within the executive branch of government, that exercise control regardless of the policies of the elected leaders who run th bureaucracies.
Elon Musk, co-head of U.S. President Donald Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency, said on Feb. 24 that the ongoing criminal proceedings against Netanyahu are a product of the deep state.
