# Israel’s Progressive Left Is Playing a Dangerous Game

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-pulse-of-israel-1194614/israel-s-progressive-left-is-playing-a-dangerous-game
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-pulse-of-israel-1194614/israel-s-progressive-left-is-playing-a-dangerous-game.md
Podcast: [The Pulse of Israel](https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-pulse-of-israel-1194614)
Published: 2026-06-22T18:52:41+00:00
Episode link: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/avi-abelow/episodes/Israels-Progressive-Left-Is-Playing-a-Dangerous-Game-e3l4u3l
Audio file: https://anchor.fm/s/ff62200/podcast/play/121845301/https%3A%2F%2Fd3ctxlq1ktw2nl.cloudfront.net%2Fstaging%2F2026-5-22%2F426628991-44100-2-ad498fcccf441.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/the-pulse-of-israel-1194614/episodes/israel-s-progressive-left-is-playing-a-dangerous-game
Duration seconds: 662

## Resource

In 2017, former Israeli Prime Minister and Defense Minister Ehud Barak delivered a speech that now deserves renewed attention.Years before the judicial reform protests, Barak described a scenario in which senior military and intelligence figures would resist a democratically elected right-wing government, the Supreme Court would block its agenda, and mass protests would physically obstruct the will of Israeli voters.Today, Israel is experiencing a political and social crisis that makes those words impossible to ignore.The public debate is focused on the Ultra-Orthodox draft law, IDF service, and the deep frustration felt by many Israelis carrying the burden of reserve duty during wartime. It is a real issue. But it may also be serving as a distraction from a larger struggle over Israel’s identity, sovereignty, military readiness, and democratic future.In this video, Avi Abelow examines what he calls the progressive left’s political “magic trick”: creating maximum division inside Israel’s national camp while shifting attention away from policies and institutions that deserve far greater scrutiny.We discuss the impact of judicial activism, the Attorney General’s role, the Supreme Court, the media, and ongoing debates over mixed-gender combat units and military policy. We also address the concern among many national-religious Israelis that ideological priorities inside the IDF are affecting motivated soldiers and weakening national unity at a critical time.The central question is not whether Israel should debate the draft, military service, or the role of religion in public life. Of course it should.The question is whether Israelis are being pushed into fighting one another while powerful institutions and political movements avoid accountability for decisions that have sh…

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