No winner, one message: Israel votes for consensus

Col Guru Saday Batabyal (Retd) New Delhi, Nov 2 (UNI) Israel's latest election has produced no outright winner, but it has delivered a remarkably clear political message. Voters have neither endorsed the status quo nor authorised a decisive transfer of power. Instead, they have produced a fragmented mandate that points towards a single conclusion: compromise has become a strategic necessity. The significance of the election lies less in the arithmetic of seats than in the circumstances under which it was fought. Israel remains engaged in a prolonged conflict in Gaza, faces continuing tensions with Hezbollah along the Lebanese frontier, confronts…