Gadi Eisenkot, the former Israeli military chief whose party finished second in October’s election, began talks on forming a government this week, with a deadline of 6 December and no straightforward majority in the Knesset.
President Isaac Herzog gave Eisenkot the mandate on 7 November, after consultations in which the Yashar party leader collected 67 recommendations from members of the 120-seat parliament, against 46 for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The 28-day window began on Sunday and can be extended by up to 14 days.
The arithmetic is awkward. Netanyahu’s bloc holds 53 seats and Eisenkot’s four-party “change bloc” 48, leaving the two Arab-led lists – the Joint List with 11 seats and Ra’am with eight – holding the balance. A majority requires 61.
“Approaching a point of no return”
“We are in a state of emergency, approaching a point of no return for the state of Israel,” Eisenkot said as he received the mandate. “We must form a national emergency government. This will require creative and unconventional political steps.”
He has said Israel is in the middle of a diplomatic crisis, with even its closest allies questioning the relationship. He has appealed to Netanyahu’s Likud and to the far-right party of finance minister Bezalel Smotrich to join him – but only with himself as prime minister.
Three routes, all blocked
Three paths are open to him, and each has an obstacle. A power-sharing deal with Netanyahu would command a majority, but would require Eisenkot’s bloc to abandon its central election promise to replace him. Relying on the Arab-led parties would mean a minority government, which Avigdor Liberman’s Yisrael Beiteinu has ruled out; Liberman met Eisenkot on Monday in talks both sides described as productive, and has dropped his objection to including ultra-Orthodox parties, but he still refuses to depend on Arab support.
The third route runs through the ultra-Orthodox parties. Shas and United Torah Judaism hold 13 seats between them, which would give Eisenkot exactly 61 – but they want legislation protecting military service exemptions for their community, an issue that has divided Israeli politics for years. United Torah Judaism has indicated it is willing to consider supporting an Eisenkot-led minority government.
Eisenkot has set conditions for partners: recognition of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state, adherence to the values of Israel’s declaration of independence, mandatory national service for all, and recognition of Hamas as a terrorist organisation. Those terms are difficult for the Arab-led lists to accept, and the Joint List has said it will vote with the bloc in the Knesset but does not intend to join a government.
Netanyahu’s counter-offer
Netanyahu has not conceded. On Monday he renewed his call for a unity government under his own leadership, one that would include the Zionist and ultra-Orthodox parties but not the Arab-led lists, which he described as “Hamas supporters”. He argued that Likud, with 27 seats, remains the largest party and took 250,000 more votes than Eisenkot’s. The new Knesset was sworn in on Tuesday.
Netanyahu has also claimed the election was “stolen” by the Arab parties, without offering evidence. Shin Bet, the domestic security service, is investigating possible foreign interference in the vote; the Central Elections Committee and President Herzog have said the result is valid and that any irregularities did not change it.
If Eisenkot fails and no other candidate can assemble a majority, Israel goes back to the polls. The country held five elections between 2019 and 2022.
The Daily Lens has not verified the negotiating positions beyond published reporting; coalition talks in Israel move quickly and some details come from unnamed officials. Seat totals are the published final election results.
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