Israeli President tasks Gadi Eizenkot with forming new government

Following the October 27 legislative elections which resulted in no clear winner, Israeli President Isaac Herzog has officially tasked opposition leader and former military chief Gadi Eizenkot with forming a new government. This decision follows consultations with all parliamentary parties, during which Eizenkot secured support from 67 members of the 120-seat Knesset, including the Arab Joint List and Ra'am, compared to 46 for the outgoing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The Arab parties' support aims to prevent a return to power for Netanyahu, who has served as the longest-running premier in Israel's history.

Despite Eizenkot's parliamentary support, he faces significant challenges in forming a stable coalition due to internal disagreements and mutual vetoes among opposition parties, some of which oppose including Arab parties in the government. Eizenkot has called for an emergency national government and issued an invitation to Netanyahu's Likud party to join, provided they distance themselves from extremist factions. Netanyahu has criticized this approach, warning against a coalition supported by Arab parties. Eizenkot now has 28 days to negotiate and form a government, with a potential 14-day extension permitted by law. He has vowed to do everything possible to address the nation's current political and diplomatic crises.