As Israel charts a future, colour and chaos abound in its poll

Netanyahu faces an unexpectedly stiff challenge from Benny Gantz, a former army chief

History seemed to be closing in on Benjamin Netanyahu. Even as he neared the mark set by Israel’s founding leader, David Ben-Gurion, as the longest-serving prime minister, an array of new enemies was rising up around him. He faced an unexpectedly stiff challenge from Benny Gantz, a 6-foot-4 former army chief and career soldier who could credibly offset Netanyahu’s marquee credential as Israel’s “Mr Security.”
 
The attorney general wanted to indict him on corruption charges, accusing him of trading lucrative government favors for positive news coverage. A new scandal bubbled up when he revealed that he had secretly approved