In the quiet aftermath of an inconclusive election, Israel's president has handed the first attempt at forming a government to Gadi Eisenkot, a former military chief who challenged the long-serving Benjamin Netanyahu. Neither man commanded a clear majority, so the question of who will lead has passed into a slower, more delicate art of persuasion, where parties must decide whether old rivalries or shared fears matter more. Netanyahu has called for unity and warned against partners he considers dangerous, while Eisenkot has set conditions that test the limits of his own coalition. It is a momen
Herzog Gives Opposition Leader Eisenkot First Chance to Form Israeli Government
Neither Eisenkot nor Netanyahu won a clear majority in the vote.
Mark
Herzog picked Eisenkot on Saturday night. Why does that matter if nobody won a majority?
Mimi
Because the first chance to form a government is a real advantage. Most of the main parties told Herzog this week they wanted Eisenkot to try, and that carried the decision.
Mark
And Netanyahu's video came right before the announcement?
Mimi
Shortly before. He called for a national unity government and warned against swearing in a government with terrorist supporters.
Luke
Worth noting that the report calls that an apparent reference to the Arab-led parties. Netanyahu didn't name them in the quoted words.
Mark
What is Eisenkot's position on those parties?
Mimi
He's indicated he'd partner with them under certain conditions, including calling Hamas a terrorist group that must be destroyed.
Luke
Indicated is the key word. We don't have a signed deal or a named party agreeing to those terms.
Mark
Yashar also went after Likud on X.
Mimi
It urged Likud members to disavow their alliance with radical parties, and said Eisenkot would only include those who share his principles.
Luke
Again, radical parties is read as meaning the more extreme religious-nationalist partners. And whether any Likud member breaks away is entirely unknown right now.
Le Pouls
- The October 27 vote delivered no clear winner, leaving Israel's political map fractured and every seat suddenly valuable.
- President Herzog's Saturday announcement handed Gadi Eisenkot the first chance to build a coalition, as most main parties backed his bid.
- Netanyahu's video call for a 'national unity government' and his warning about 'terrorist supporters' landed like a challenge thrown into the middle of the negotiations.
- Eisenkot's party, Yashar, is pressing Likud members to break from radical allies and is insisting any partner must recognize Hamas as a terrorist group.
- The outcome now hinges on whether Eisenkot can assemble a working majority and whether Likud loyalists will split from their more extreme religious-nationalist partners.
In the quiet aftermath of an inconclusive election, Israel's president has handed the first attempt at forming a government to Gadi Eisenkot, a former military chief who challenged the long-serving Benjamin Netanyahu. Neither man commanded a clear majority, so the question of who will lead has passed into a slower, more delicate art of persuasion, where parties must decide whether old rivalries or shared fears matter more. Netanyahu has called for unity and warned against partners he considers dangerous, while Eisenkot has set conditions that test the limits of his own coalition. It is a moment that asks what a divided country is willing to trade in order to be governed at all.
On Saturday night, President Isaac Herzog announced from Jerusalem that Gadi Eisenkot would get the first chance to form a governing coalition after the October 27 elections. The announcement arrived a day ahead of what had been expected, and it came at the end of a week of marathon talks with party leaders.
Eisenkot, a former military chief, led a bloc of parties united by a single goal: removing Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's longest-serving prime minister, from office. The ballot did not deliver that result. Neither Eisenkot nor Netanyahu secured a clear majority, so the decision passed to Herzog. Most of the major parties recommended Eisenkot, and the president had already accepted the results and begun the groundwork for a government.
The timing carried weight. Shortly before Herzog spoke, Netanyahu released a video calling for a "national unity government" and cautioning against "hastily swearing in a government with terrorist supporters," a clear reference to the Arab-led parties. Eisenkot has taken a different path, signaling he would work with them if they recognize Hamas as a terrorist group that must be destroyed.
His party, Yashar, responded by urging Likud members to distance themselves from radical parties within Netanyahu's religious-nationalist base. It also made clear that any partner would have to share its principles, including the recognition of Hamas as a terrorist organization.
What comes next is a test of arithmetic and loyalty. Eisenkot must show he can assemble a working coalition without a majority from the vote itself, and the country is watching to see whether any Likud members are willing to break with their more extreme allies.
On Saturday night, Israeli President Isaac Herzog announced that opposition candidate Gadi Eisenkot would get the first chance to assemble a governing coalition, following the elections held on Oct. 27. The announcement came from Jerusalem and had been expected a day later, on Sunday.
Eisenkot is a former military chief who ran as the main challenger to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel's longest-serving premier. He led a bloc of parties whose aim was to remove Netanyahu from office. The vote did not settle the matter: neither Eisenkot nor Netanyahu won a clear majority.
That left the decision to Herzog, who spent the week in marathon discussions with representatives of Israel's parties. Most of the main parties recommended that Eisenkot be the one tasked with building a new government. Herzog had already accepted the election results and taken the first steps toward forming a government before Saturday's announcement.
The timing was notable. The president spoke shortly after Netanyahu released a video statement calling for a "national unity government." In the same video, Netanyahu warned against "hastily swearing in a government with terrorist supporters." The phrase was an apparent reference to the Arab-led parties.
Those parties have been a recurring target for Netanyahu and his allies, who have repeatedly described them as a threat to national security. Eisenkot has taken a different line. He has signaled he is willing to partner with them under certain conditions, among them that they call Hamas a terrorist group that needs to be destroyed.
Eisenkot's party, Yashar, answered the prime minister's video with a statement on X. It urged members of Netanyahu's party, Likud, to disavow their alliance with "radical parties," an apparent reference to the more extreme parties in Netanyahu's religious-nationalist base.
The statement also laid out how Eisenkot would proceed. He would include only those parties and members of parliament who support his principles, and those principles include recognizing Hamas as a terrorist organization.
The path ahead turns on arithmetic and loyalty. Eisenkot now has to show he can put together a working coalition without a clear majority from the vote itself, and it remains to be seen whether any Likud members break with the more extreme religious-nationalist allies Yashar has pointed to.
Citations marquantes
Netanyahu warned against "hastily swearing in a government with terrorist supporters."— Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in a video statement
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