Israelis have begun voting in the occupation entity’s third election within the space of a year in a fight Benjamin Netanyahu is desperate to win on the eve of a criminal corruption trial against him.

The Zionist media outlets highlighted a low turnout, mentioning that it reached 14.5% during the early vote hours.

More than 6.3 million people are eligible to cast their votes in polling stations that will close at 10pm (8pm GMT) on Monday, after which exit polls will be reported.

For the more than 5,000 Israelis who were under precautionary home isolation after returning from areas of the world affected by coronavirus, special voting booths covered in plastic sheeting had been set up around the entity. Ten Israelis have contracted the virus and are quarantined. The health ministry, however, has urged people that it is safe to vote.

Over the weekend, in the final stretch of a campaign that has increasingly descended into mudslinging, Netanyahu and his main rival, the former army chief Benny Gantz, ripped into each other.

Netanyahu told Channel 12 that Gantz was “not fit” to be prime minister. “He is weak; he’s not a leader,” he said. Gantz said in another interview that his opponent was acting as if he was part of a mafia.

The entity has been in a state of political crisis for almost 12 months after two previous general elections failed to produce a clear winner.

Source: Al-Manar English Website