Former army chief Gadi Eisenkot gets mandate to form Israel’s government

Israeli President Isaac Herzog tasked opposition bloc leader Gadi Eisenkot with forming a new government after the October 27 election. Avigdor Lieberman opposes an alliance with Arab parties.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog announced on Saturday that he was tasking former chief of the IDF General Staff Gadi Eisenkot, who leads the opposition bloc, with forming a new government. The decision came after a week of consultations with all Knesset factions.

Parties representing 67 of the 120 lawmakers recommended Eisenkot, while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s bloc received the support of only 46 lawmakers. The official mandate ceremony will take place on Sunday afternoon at the president’s residence in Jerusalem.

Здание Кнессета в Иерусалиме, вид сверху (архив)

Neither of the two camps won a majority in the October 27 election sufficient to form a coalition on its own. Eisenkot, a newcomer to politics, softened his position on conscripting ultra-Orthodox men into the army and opened the way to an alliance with their parties. Arab parties, which made significant gains in the election, also recommended him.

Avigdor Lieberman, leader of Yisrael Beiteinu and a member of the opposition bloc, said he would not support Eisenkot if he relied on the votes of Arab lawmakers. In a video address, Netanyahu called such a government a threat that would “tear Israel apart from within.”

Eisenkot himself said it was time for a “national emergency government.” He has 28 days to form a coalition, with the possibility of a further 14-day extension. If he fails, the president may assign the task to another politician.