What happened to Israeli accountability? – opinion

The article argues that Israel faces a severe crisis of accountability, particularly in the aftermath of October 7. The author contends that arguments used to absolve the government of responsibility for the events of October 7 are infinitely reusable, turning truth into mere opinion and allowing blame to be assigned along political lines. This reflects a catastrophic failure in democratic governance, where leadership is no longer genuinely answerable to the people. The prevailing logic in Israel has become that "if something is not criminal, it is acceptable," and that electoral outcomes legitimize leadership regardless of failures. The author states, "the ballot box has been transformed from a tool of civic oversight into a machine for laundering guilt." This absence of guilt prevents leadership from self-correction. The article concludes that true accountability requires an ongoing relationship between the public and its representatives, demanding reckoning for failures rather than relying solely on elections, as "accountability is dead" in the current climate.