The Broken Covenant: Netanyahu and Israeli Democracy

Representing the culmination of decades of firsthand engagement with Israeli society, politics, and security dynamics. Drawing upon my experiences as a witness to pivotal moments in Israel's history—from volunteering after the Six Day War to to living through two wars and serving in the IDF as an M-109 driver in the Sinai desert, and later reporting on Jewish affairs across Europe—this work offers a deeply contextualized examination of Benjamin Netanyahu's governance and its consequences for Israeli democracy.

How did Israel's longest-serving prime minister transform a vibrant democracy into a system increasingly designed to serve personal rather than national interests?

In this unflinching analysis, Robbie Michaelson—who first volunteered in Israel after the Six Day War and later served in the IDF—examines Netanyahu's systematic erosion of the democratic institutions and norms that once defined Israeli governance. Drawing on decades of firsthand engagement with Israeli society, Michaelson traces Netanyahu's evolution from conventional politician to architect of democratic decline.

From the subordination of judicial independence to the exploitation of security concerns, from the politics of division to the corruption of governance, this book reveals the sophisticated playbook through which Netanyahu has reconfigured Israeli democracy while maintaining its outward forms. The result is not merely a political critique but a profound examination of how democracies can be hollowed from within without dramatic rupture.

As Israel stands at a democratic crossroads, The Broken Covenant offers essential insights into the price of leadership that places personal survival above national resilience, and the challenging path toward democratic renewal.