Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu warned Thursday that Iran and its proxies could launch attacks against Israel to influence the upcoming elections, pledging an exceptionally powerful response to any such attempt.

In an interview, Netanyahu said Tehran and its allies were seeking to undermine his reelection by creating a security crisis before Israelis head to the polls.

“Iran and its proxies intended to disrupt these elections and still intend to disrupt them,” he said.

Netanyahu warned that Iran and hostile forces operating from Lebanon and Gaza could use their remaining capabilities to attack Israel in an effort to affect the outcome.

“They can attack us with their remaining forces—Iran, Lebanon and Gaza—to try to influence the elections,” he said.

The prime minister argued that the objective would be to convince voters that “the security situation is not as good as you think,” thereby damaging Likud’s chances.

“If they do this, first, we will act to thwart it, and second, we will respond with extraordinary force,” Netanyahu declared.

During the interview, Netanyahu was also questioned about the investigation involving his close adviser Yonatan Urich and why he had not distanced himself from him despite testimony that Urich received hundreds of thousands of shekels from Qatar during the war.

Netanyahu rejected the criticism and characterized the investigation as politically motivated.

“This matter is being examined in an investigation, and these investigations, as is also becoming apparent from my trial, are agenda-driven, they are political—it is a political witch hunt,” he said.

Netanyahu further asserted that “Judge Mizrahi, who received all the material, says there is nothing here.”

The prime minister also rejected the prospect of a rotation government with the opposition if the election produces no clear winner.

The question followed remarks by Minister Miki Zohar suggesting that Likud should agree to a rotation arrangement if the opposition bloc wins an advantage and its leading party is larger.

Netanyahu dismissed that approach, arguing that sharing the premiership would leave the government unable to function effectively.

“I do not want to talk about it because it is paralysis. It is a recipe for paralysis,” he said. “We have been there before, and we have seen it.”

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)