Israeli President Isaac Herzog has called on people in Israel to unite ahead of a landmark election in October.
The election is "not a civil war," the news portal ynet quoted him as saying at a ceremony in Jerusalem to rebury the remains of the grandparents of the Jewish visionary Theodor Herzl. They had been exhumed from the Jewish cemetery in Belgrade and transferred to Israel.
Herzog reportedly said: "We must continue to be worthy, together, of the historic mission in which we share - the building of the Jewish state." In light of reports of a record number of Israelis leaving the country over the past three years, Herzog said: "My heart aches for every individual, every couple and every family who are moving elsewhere - we have no other place."
According to a study by Tel Aviv University, between 2023 and 2025 more than 268,500 Israeli citizens left the country for at least three consecutive months - a new high compared with previous years.
During the corresponding period 10 years earlier (2013-2015), the figure stood at just around 183,200 citizens. The researchers described the new figures as worrying. Among those emigrating are also many doctors, engineers and other academics.
A new parliament is to be elected in Israel on October 27. According to polls, it could prove difficult for both the camp of the incumbent right-wing conservative Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the opposition to secure a majority. The election campaign, which is just getting under way, is already heated.
Since the end of 2022, Israel has been facing a series of serious political and social upheavals - ranging from the right-wing religious government's controversial judicial reforms to the Hamas massacre on October 7, 2023 and the subsequent wars and military conflicts in the region.