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In Israel, Central Elections Committee Chief Justice Noam Solberg has directed Shin Bet to probe allegations of foreign funding and electoral interference following claims by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu amid a parliamentary deadlock.
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00:00Can a country call itself the only democracy in West Asia when an entire population questions
00:05who that democracy really serves? And can a president win over a minority community
00:11with promises of prosperity only to watch that support slip away before crucial elections?
00:17Today, two stories about democracy, identity, and the price of political choices.
00:23In an exclusive interview, Israeli-born filmmaker and academic professor Haim Rashid
00:28delivers a blistering critique of Israeli democracy,
00:33questioning whether majority support can justify the destruction of another people.
00:38Then across the Atlantic, President Trump faces a different test.
00:41Indian Americans who gave Republicans a second look now have reasons to reconsider.
00:47One democracy faces questions about its moral foundations.
00:51Another political leader faces questions about his electoral future.
00:55Because winning support is one thing, keeping it is another.
01:00Hello and welcome. You're watching Statecraft with me, Geeta Mohan.
01:03Israel's election deadlock has taken a dramatic turn.
01:07The country's election chief has ordered a probe into suspected foreign interference
01:11after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu alleged widespread malpractice in the vote.
01:17Justice Noam Solberg, who chairs Israel's Central Elections Committee,
01:21has directed Shin Bet chief David Zinni to investigate whether foreign entities funded attempts
01:27to improperly influence the election.
01:30The agency must submit its findings within one week.
01:33Solberg said the allegations raised serious concerns,
01:36but also made clear that he could not verify their substance.
01:40The investigation must establish whether evidence supports or disproves the claims.
01:45Netanyahu and his Likud party have accused Arab political parties of undermining the election
01:51through alleged bribery, threats, violence and other electoral offences.
01:56Netanyahu claims his party has evidence of cash distribution alongside Rahm ballot slips,
02:03duplicate voting, threats against polling staff and discrepancies in ballot counts.
02:09He said the evidence will go to the police, Shin Bet and election authorities.
02:14But these remain allegations and the investigation will determine whether they have any substance.
02:19Timing is critical here because Israel's election has produced no clear path to a majority.
02:25The Knesset has 120 seats and any government needs 61 to rule.
02:31Current projections put Likud at 26 seats,
02:34while Netanyahu's wider bloc stands at 53, 8 short of a majority.
02:39The opposition bloc has 48 seats, while Arab parties are projected to win 19.
02:45That leaves Arab parties with potentially decisive influence over who forms the next government.
02:51But whether the opposition can work with them remains a major political hurdle.
02:55The investigation now adds another layer of uncertainty to an already tense election.
03:00It could help establish whether foreign money or electoral misconduct played a role.
03:05But it does not by itself prove that the vote was compromised.
03:09With security agencies given seven days to report back, Israel faces two urgent questions.
03:15Were there genuine attempts to interfere with the election?
03:19And will the final findings change the battle to form the next government?
03:23Earlier today, I spoke with Israeli-born filmmaker and academic professor Haim Barshid Zabner.
03:29His critique of Israeli society and Palestinian rights raises uncomfortable questions about democracy
03:35and accountability, especially during Israel's elections.
03:38Listen in.
03:39You can watch the full interview on India Today Global's YouTube channel.
03:43Israel has voted, but what does it mean for the future of Israel and where it's headed?
03:49For now, we see a stalemate, but there is going to be a lot of conversation, negotiations.
03:53But at the end of the day, it does seem like Israel is choosing between maybe a right and a
03:59very far right.
04:00What is it going to be?
04:02To discuss this and more, I'm being joined by Haim Barshid Zabner.
04:07He's an Israeli-born filmmaker, photographer, academic, and an activist who specializes in film studies.
04:14And he's also associated with SOAS University of London, where he's a professorial research associate.
04:22Thank you so much, Haim, for joining us here and giving us your time.
04:26Let's begin with the results.
04:28It does seem like it is between the right and the very far right.
04:33How are you looking at how Israel has really voted?
04:38Well, thanks for having me.
04:41I think Israel doesn't have any left.
04:48So it's a right-wing country, an extreme right-wing society,
04:54a society in some kind of social psychosis, in cognitive dissonance, in denial.
05:09The whole world sees the genocide in Gaza, the genocide in southern Lebanon,
05:18and the attacks on Syria, on Yemen, and, of course, the illegal and illogical work against Iran,
05:30war against Iran, together with the U.S.
05:33But Israelis just see this as normality.
05:37This is business as usual.
05:39The percentage of public support for all those terrible war crimes is between 82%,
05:53which is the lowest it ever was, and 97%.
05:58The 97% comes from two different University of Tel Aviv polls,
06:07and the polls both supported the action in Gaza by 97%.
06:15So this is not a normal society.
06:18And let's start from there.
06:21Secondly, this is a society that is very cleaved and at war with itself
06:31between two right-wing political blocs,
06:37and they were now fighting each other in the election,
06:42and the election is basically, you know, the result is going nowhere,
06:49because both are very near in size.
06:54Because none of them has control, and both of them refused to use the Arab-Palestinian parties
07:04as part of their bid for control.
07:09I was meaning to ask you this about the Arab parties.
07:15Now, they have offered outside support to Eisenhower.
07:19Is it ironical that at the end of the day, Arab parties could be kingmakers,
07:25overhear rejection, but numbers speak for themselves nonetheless?
07:30Well, the numbers could be even higher if all the Palestinians in Israel used their vote
07:39and used their vote wisely.
07:41In other words, voting for their own parties,
07:45they could be in the high 20s of MPs, members of parliament, on their own.
07:55That's not the case, because quite a lot of the votes in the Palestinian arena
08:02are bought by the Zionist parties.
08:04But still, 19 MPs, if this stays, tomorrow is the day when the votes of the soldiers are calculated in.
08:14So there will be some changes.
08:16But even if they go down a rung to 18, that's without precedent in Israel.
08:24So this is the first time that the voting in Palestinian circles was really very, very high.
08:32They offered their voice and their support to Eisenhower,
08:40not because they support Eisenhower, because there's nothing to support there,
08:45but because they want the end of the Netanyahu government.
08:51The whole call was vote Netanyahu out.
08:53So another question before I move to Palestinians, Gaza,
08:59and what's happening in the West Bank.
09:02The fact that the Arab parties have numbers,
09:05the soldiers' votes are going to be counted.
09:08Do you think that will be an advantage Netanyahu,
09:10or it could very well be an advantage of Eisenhower?
09:13I don't think the soldiers will advantage Eisenhower more than Netanyahu.
09:20That's very unlikely.
09:21The younger you are in Israel, the more right-wing you are.
09:26So they would advantage Netanyahu to some degree.
09:30We don't know how much.
09:32And they will also advantage the extreme right,
09:37which is, you know, the two parties of B'talos, Mottrich, and Ben Gvir.
09:43So those are the parties that will be advantaged by the soldiers' voices.
09:51Okay.
09:52I just wanted to understand one aspect.
09:56Now we're looking at the biggest news that's coming in from Israel is,
10:01one, fraudulent voting is what Netanyahu is accusing in certain quarters.
10:08But he's also now come out with allegations of foreign funding,
10:12because of which the numbers were not as he was expecting it to be.
10:19What do you make of the allegations of foreign funding tilting the voting in Israel?
10:26It's just, I think this is total nonsense.
10:29This is just an attempt to derail the support for Eisenkot from those parties.
10:41And it just allows him to say,
10:45these people are supported by Qatar and so on.
10:49And working with them is definitely a betrayal of Zionism.
10:57So you have to expect this from Netanyahu.
11:02He's a very seasoned liar himself.
11:06So he would use this, wouldn't he?
11:09A controversial campaign ad,
11:11a president defending his candidate,
11:13and a Republican Party worried about the political fallout.
11:17U.S. President Donald Trump is standing by Vivek Ramaswamy,
11:21the Republican candidate for governor of Ohio,
11:23despite a campaign ad that has sparked an outcry
11:26and could have consequences far beyond the governor's race.
11:30Trump made his third visit to Ohio on Wednesday night,
11:33using a rally in Chillicothe to defend Ramaswamy
11:37against criticism over the advertisement.
11:39The controversy centers on Amy Acton,
11:42Ramaswamy's Democratic opponent,
11:44and Ohio's former state health director.
11:47The campaign ad features allegations made by Acton's estranged mother,
11:51who accuses her daughter of being a dishonest candidate.
11:55She urged Ohioans to not vote for her daughter.
11:59Acton has called the advertisement despicable,
12:01alleging that Ramaswamy's campaign
12:03is exploiting her mother's circumstances.
12:06Acton has also revealed that her mother's husband
12:09was charged with raping her when she was 12.
12:12She was subsequently removed from her mother's custody
12:15and says she has not seen her in decades.
12:18But Trump is refusing to back away.
12:21He argued that Ramaswamy was being treated unfairly
12:24and questioned why the candidate should be held responsible
12:26for the mother's allegations.
12:29The Ramaswamy campaign is reportedly committing $4 million
12:32to the advertisement,
12:33intensifying concerns about its potential political impact.
12:37And this is where the controversy becomes bigger
12:40than one gubernatorial contest.
12:42Ohio is also home to a closely fought U.S. Senate race
12:46with Republican incumbent John Husted
12:49facing former Democratic Senator Sherrod Brown.
12:52Republicans are already confronting political headwinds
12:55ahead of the midterm elections.
12:57Any backlash against Ramaswamy's campaign
13:00could spill over into other races,
13:02including the battle for the Senate.
13:04But who exactly is Vivek Ramaswamy?
13:07The 41-year-old Indian-American entrepreneur,
13:10rose to national prominence during the 2024 Republican presidential primaries.
13:15A biotechnology entrepreneur and investor,
13:18he built his political profile around an outspoken anti-establishment message
13:23and a pledge to overhaul the federal government.
13:26He eventually dropped out of the presidential race
13:29and endorsed President Trump,
13:30becoming a prominent figure in the president's political orbit.
13:35Now Ramaswamy is seeking to translate that national profile into power in Ohio.
13:40With Trump defending him publicly,
13:42Ramaswamy is keeping the controversy alive.
13:45The question for Republicans is whether this fight stays confined to Ohio's governor's race
13:50or becomes a liability across the party's midterm campaign.
13:54Is Indian-American support for Trump slipping before midterms?
13:58President Trump had a problem with Indian-American voters in 2020.
14:02By 2024, he had made progress.
14:05But ahead of the November 3rd midterms,
14:08that progress looks increasingly fragile.
14:11A community that gave the Republicans a second look
14:14now has plenty of reasons to reconsider.
14:16Visa restrictions have hit skilled workers and students.
14:21Prices have climbed.
14:22And parts of Trump's own political movement have embraced rhetoric
14:26that makes Indian immigrants feel less welcome in the country they call home.
14:31Then there's the relationship with India,
14:33where trade disputes and diplomatic friction
14:35have challenged expectations of a special friendship.
14:39The numbers tell a striking story.
14:4266% of Indian-American respondents
14:44preferred Democrats for Congress
14:47against just 22% for Republicans
14:50in the latest AAPI data survey.
14:52So what went wrong for Trump?
14:54And are Indian-Americans returning to the Democrats
14:57or simply looking for an exit from the Republicans?
15:00Start with the numbers.
15:02In 2020, just 22% of registered Indian-American voters
15:06intended to vote for Trump.
15:08By 2024, that figure climbed to 32%.
15:12Democratic identification also fell from 56% in 2020
15:17to 47% in 2024.
15:20Trump had made inroads.
15:22He had made progress.
15:23But the latest figures suggest that the goodwill did not last.
15:27An August survey by AAPI data
15:29and Asian and Pacific Islander American vote found
15:33that 66% of Indian-American respondents
15:36favored Democrats for the House
15:39against 18% for Republicans.
15:42For the Senate, Democrats led 66% to 22%.
15:46That is not a photo finish.
15:48It is a substantial Democratic advantage.
15:51But what changed between 2024 and now?
15:55Analysts point to immigration restrictions,
15:58rising prices, anti-Indian rhetoric,
16:00and disappointment over U.S.-India relations.
16:03First, immigration.
16:05For many Indian-American families,
16:08this is not an abstract debate about border security.
16:11It concerns jobs, education, permanent residence,
16:15and the future they've built in America.
16:18The Trump administration tightened visa rules,
16:21stepped up immigration enforcement,
16:23and sharply increased visa fees.
16:26Indian professionals and graduate students
16:28have felt the effects.
16:29Some voters who backed Trump
16:31may have expected his administration
16:33to focus on illegal immigration.
16:36Instead, restrictions also hit the skilled workers
16:39who contribute to the American economy.
16:42Why would voters stick with the party
16:44if its policies threaten their professional prospects
16:47and family plans?
16:49For some, the answer may be simple.
16:52They will not.
16:53Then comes the cost of living.
16:55Inflation stood at 3% when Trump took office
16:59and reached 3.7% last month.
17:02Food, fuel, and other essentials cost more,
17:05adding pressure to household budgets.
17:08The U.S. around war, which began in late February,
17:11has added to those concerns.
17:13And when bills rise,
17:14political slogans do not pay them.
17:17Could this make Indian-Americans blame Trump alone?
17:20Not necessarily.
17:21Some independents and moderates
17:24will weigh economic conditions
17:26and policy priorities,
17:28rather than automatically support Democrats.
17:31Others may hold both parties responsible.
17:34The point is that affordability
17:36has become a major test of political loyalty.
17:39If voters believe the administration
17:40has failed to ease their financial burden,
17:44Republican support could suffer,
17:46particularly in closely contested races.
17:49But money is not the only issue.
17:51There's also the question of belonging.
17:53In September, Beau French,
17:55the Republican nominee for the Texas Railroad Commission,
17:59posted a photograph of South Asian students
18:01celebrating a University of Texas football victory
18:04and claimed it showed how Americans
18:07had been displaced by foreigners.
18:10Republican Senator John Cornyn
18:12condemned the remarks as racist.
18:15French defended his position by arguing
18:17that universities should prioritize Americans
18:20over foreign students and workers.
18:23Why does this matter politically?
18:25Because Indian-American voters
18:27can support pro-business policies
18:29and still reject rhetoric
18:30that portrays their community as a threat.
18:34Such campaigns have eroded goodwill
18:36generated by Republican lawmakers
18:38who favor attracting skilled technology workers.
18:41You cannot court talent on Monday
18:44and tell it to go home on Tuesday
18:46without consequences.
18:47The same disappointment extends beyond domestic policy.
18:51Trump's public support for Prime Minister Narendra Modi
18:53led some Indian-Americans
18:55to expect closer U.S.-India ties.
18:58Instead, trade policy swung
19:00from proposed tariffs of 100% on Indian goods,
19:03partly over India's Russian oil purchases,
19:06to a subsequent change of course.
19:08His outreach to Pakistan also rankled
19:11some members of the diaspora,
19:13especially given India's concerns
19:15about cross-border militancy and terrorism
19:17and Trump's disputed claims of mediation
19:20during last year's five-day India-Pakistan war.
19:24Did the promise of a close relationship with Modi
19:27translate into the relationship some voters expected?
19:30For some, clearly not.
19:32Political symbolism can win goodwill,
19:35but policy decisions can quickly spend it.
19:39Are Indian-Americans returning to the Democrats?
19:41Carnegie's 2026 survey found that
19:4446% identify as Democrats,
19:4719% as Republicans,
19:49and 29% as Independents.
19:52While Democrats hold an advantage,
19:54they cannot take it for granted.
19:56Though under 1.5% of eligible voters,
19:59Indian-Americans are concentrated
20:00in key swing states like Pennsylvania,
20:03Georgia, New Jersey, North Carolina,
20:06making them vital in tight races.
20:09The verdict?
20:10Trump's gains among Indian-Americans
20:12have come under pressure
20:14from policies that affect their livelihoods,
20:16rhetoric that challenges their sense of belonging,
20:19and foreign policy choices
20:21that have disappointed some of his supporters.
20:24The midterms will test
20:26whether that dissatisfaction
20:27translates into votes.
20:29Indian-Americans may not have become
20:31enthusiastic Democrats again,
20:33but for many,
20:34the Republican alternative
20:36has become harder to defend.
20:38India is ready to take its fight
20:40against terrorism beyond its borders
20:41and share its battlefield experience
20:44with partners across the Indo-Pacific.
20:47Defense Minister Rajnath Singh
20:48has offered ASEAN members
20:50and their dialogue partners
20:51India's counter-terrorism expertise
20:53as security threats grow across the region.
20:56Speaking at the ASEAN Defense Minister's meeting
20:59plus conclave in Cebu, the Philippines,
21:01on Thursday,
21:03Singh called for stronger cooperation
21:04against terrorism
21:05and threats to maritime security.
21:07He stressed that countries
21:09must move beyond statements
21:11and work together
21:12through intelligence sharing,
21:14joint military exercises,
21:15and practical training.
21:17Singh pointed to Operation Sindhur,
21:19launched by India last year,
21:20as an example of New Delhi's approach
21:23to state-sponsored terrorism.
21:25He said the operation
21:26targeted terrorist infrastructure
21:28and demonstrated India's resolve
21:30to respond to cross-border threats.
21:32India's offer comes after decades
21:34of experience confronting terrorism,
21:36including attacks linked to groups
21:38operating across its borders.
21:41New Delhi now wants to turn that experience
21:43into a wider security partnership,
21:45helping friendly nations
21:46strengthen their own capabilities.
21:48But terrorism is only one part of the agenda.
21:52Singh also underlined India's commitment
21:54to a secure and resilient Indo-Pacific,
21:57where trade routes remain open
21:59and countries respect
22:00international maritime law.
22:02He highlighted the importance
22:03of the United Nations Convention
22:05on the Law of the Sea,
22:06that's UNCLOS,
22:07freedom of navigation,
22:09and freedom of overflight.
22:11These principles carry particular weight
22:13as several ASEAN members
22:14face growing concerns
22:16over China's military presence
22:18and territorial claims
22:19in the disputed South China Sea.
22:21For India, the message is clear.
22:23Regional security cannot depend
22:25on declarations alone.
22:27It requires cooperation,
22:29stronger capabilities,
22:30and respect for common rules.
22:33Singh also reaffirmed India's role
22:34as a trusted net security provider
22:36in the Indian Ocean
22:37and the wider Indo-Pacific.
22:39The challenge now is
22:41whether this offer
22:42will translate
22:43into deeper intelligence sharing,
22:44more joint exercises,
22:46and stronger regional coordination.
22:49As strategic competition intensifies,
22:51India wants to be seen
22:52not just as a security partner,
22:55but as a country
22:56ready to help its neighbors
22:58confront common threats.
22:59That's all in this edition of Statecraft.
23:01Before we go,
23:02who says royalty
23:03can't hit the dance floor?
23:05King Charles joined revelers
23:07at the colourful Jankanu parade
23:09in the Bahamas,
23:10dancing along with the procession.
23:12But beneath the celebrations
23:14lies a difficult history
23:16as Caribbean nations
23:17renew calls for Britain
23:18to pay reparations
23:19for its role in the slave trade.
23:22The King's Caribbean tour
23:23will also take him to Guyana
23:26and Antiguan Babuda
23:27for the Commonwealth summit.
23:29And with that,
23:30it's a wrap from me.
23:31Goodbye and take care.