Israeli opposition leaders are set to meet on Tuesday for their first joint talks since backing Gadi Eisenkot for prime minister, as Benjamin Netanyahu calls for a broad national government under his leadership.
The meeting follows last week’s close election, in which no bloc secured a majority. Eisenkot’s Yashar party said leaders of the change bloc would meet in Herzliya on Tuesday morning to coordinate their next steps.
Eisenkot’s bloc won 48 seats. Netanyahu’s camp secured 53, including 27 for Likud. Arab-majority lists won a record 19 seats in the 120-member Knesset, making their support potentially decisive.
Netanyahu on Monday called for a broad national government without Arab parties and argued that, as leader of the largest party, he should lead the next coalition.
In a statement on Likud’s Telegram channel, Netanyahu said a clear majority of Jewish voters had chosen Likud as the largest party and him as prime minister.
He said he wanted a broad coalition with his partners and any party that did not support terrorism.
Netanyahu ruled out governing with the Arab-majority lists, accusing them of supporting terrorism and denying Israel’s existence as a Jewish state.
Arab Israeli party leaders condemned the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, but did not designate the Palestinian Islamist group a terrorist organization. Ra’am’s leader recognizes Israel as a Jewish state, while other Arab leaders reject that definition.
Before the election, leaders of the two Arab-majority lists told AFP they shared the goal of removing a government they described as racist.
All leaders in Eisenkot’s bloc had backed him to form the next government by Monday, and Arab parties indicated they could support him.
The bloc remains divided over accepting Arab-party support. Democrats leader Yair Golan favors cooperation, while right-wing Yisrael Beiteinu leader Avigdor Lieberman strongly opposes it. Eisenkot’s party appears to reject the idea, while Naftali Bennett’s center-right Together party has not made its position clear.
President Isaac Herzog will begin consulting party representatives on Wednesday. He has seven days, until November 11, to choose a candidate to form a government.
The nominee will receive 28 days to build a coalition, with a possible 14-day extension. If the first candidate fails, a second candidate may receive another 28 days.
If the second attempt also fails, 61 lawmakers can ask the president to select a third candidate. If no request is made within 14 days, parliament will be dissolved and a new election held.
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