Arabic version: إيزنكوت يواجه مفاوضات صعبة لتشكيل ائتلاف إسرائيلي

According to Al Jazeera, President Isaac Herzog selected opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot to try to form Israel’s next government after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition lost its parliamentary majority in the October election. Eisenkot, 66, has 28 days to assemble a coalition and may seek a 14-day extension if needed.

Eisenkot’s Yashar party won 21 seats in the 120-member Knesset. His potential bloc with Yair Golan’s Democrats, Naftali Bennett’s Together party and Avigdor Lieberman’s Yisrael Beiteinu controls 48 seats, short of the 61 needed for a majority. Netanyahu’s religious-nationalist coalition has 53 seats, down from 64 in 2022, while Likud remains the largest individual party with 27 seats.

Arab-led parties Ra’am and the Joint List, which together hold 19 seats, have endorsed Eisenkot’s effort. Their backing would give the wider anti-Netanyahu camp 67 seats. However, Eisenkot has ruled out including Arab parties in his government, and Lieberman has rejected a minority administration dependent on their support. Golan’s Democrats have expressed greater willingness to work with them.

One option would be a minority government formed by Eisenkot’s four-party bloc with outside parliamentary support from Ra’am and the Joint List. The Arab-led parties would not necessarily hold cabinet posts, but could seek policy concessions for their backing. Another path would be to bring Shas and United Torah Judaism, which hold 13 seats combined, into the coalition. That would produce exactly 61 seats but would require compromises over military-service exemptions for ultra-Orthodox religious students.

A unity government involving Yashar, Together, Yisrael Beiteinu and Likud would hold 67 seats, but would conflict with Eisenkot’s and his partners’ pledge to remove Netanyahu. United Torah Judaism declined to endorse any candidate during Herzog’s consultations, though it could still negotiate with Netanyahu. If Eisenkot fails, Herzog could give Netanyahu a chance to form a coalition; if neither succeeds, parliament could nominate another candidate. If no government emerges after a 100-day process, Israelis could return to the polls.