Israeli President Herzog appoints Gadi Eisenkot to build coalition
President Isaac Herzog appointed former military chief Gadi Eisenkot on 3 November to try to assemble a governing coalition in Israel, and by 8 November the mandate was confirmed. Earlier, the ultra-Orthodox Shas party signaled openness to joining Eisenkot’s talks while United Torah Judaism considered abstaining from the prime-minister recommendation.
Yisrael Beiteinu chairman Avigdor Liberman said he would no longer block a coalition that includes ultra-Orthodox parties and later indicated willingness to relax his demand for universal conscription, keeping three red lines. Eisenkot said negotiations were advancing as the ultra-Orthodox draft-conscription stance softened.