Former army chief Gadi Eisenkot begins coalition talks to challenge Netanyahu
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Gadi Eisenkot, head of the Yashar party, has received a mandate to form a government and is reaching out across the political spectrum as Israel confronts diplomatic isolation and a hung Knesset.
Israel's former chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot was given a 28-day mandate by President Isaac Herzog on Sunday to assemble a governing coalition. Eisenkot, 66, heads the Yashar party and said the country is in a "state of emergency, approaching a point of no return" and that a national emergency government will require "creative and unconventional political steps" in order to restore stability and keep the state functioning.
He outlined three possible paths: a power-sharing deal with Benjamin Netanyahu, support from Arab-led parties, or an agreement with ultra-Orthodox factions that currently enjoy military draft exemptions. Eisenkot stressed that any Arab party joining his bloc must recognise Israel as a Jewish state and label Hamas a terrorist organisation, while the Yisrael Beiteinu party has ruled out such a partnership, showing how narrow the room for manoeuvre is in this fractured political landscape.
Eisenkot appealed to Likud and the far-right party of finance minister Bezalel Smotrich, stating, "> My door is open and my hand is extended, wholeheartedly and willingly, to anyone who understands the gravity of this moment." The message reflects an effort to assemble a workable majority, even if it requires difficult compromises with parties that do not naturally align.
The opposition bloc holds 48 of the 120 Knesset seats, with Netanyahu's camp at 53, leaving no clear majority. Eisenkot received endorsements from Arab-majority lists, which could become kingmakers. He also pledged to end draft exemptions for the ultra-Orthodox and to crack down on extremist settler violence, which he described as "Jewish terror". Supporters of stronger law-and-order measures are likely to view that promise as a necessary response to unrest, while critics will see it as another politically charged label.
If Eisenkot fails to secure the required 61 votes within the initial period, Herzog may grant a 14-day extension before the mandate passes to another candidate, potentially leading to fresh elections after a series of deadlocks since 2019.