"Israel's Unforeseen Turning Point: Navigating Power, Hostages, and Protest"

Israel's largest protests in six months have seen calls for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to resign, but it's the demonstrations by ultra-Orthodox Jews against mandatory conscription that may pose the biggest risk to his grip on power. Netanyahu faces criticism for his handling of the Israel-Hamas conflict, with internal discord and international condemnation. The issue of conscripting yeshiva students has caused fractures in his far-right coalition government, with Defense Minister Yoav Gallant and potential successor Benny Gantz supporting an end to exemptions, while coalition members threaten to bring down the government unless the funding is protected. Netanyahu's challenge is to negotiate a compromise or call one side's bluff to prevent a collapse of his government.