Eisenkot rules out serving under Netanyahu even if Trump asks, insisting Israel’s coalition talks are an internal matter

Israeli opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot has ruled out joining a government led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu even if U.S. President Donald Trump personally asks him to do so, as Israel’s fragmented election result leaves both camps searching for a viable governing coalition.

Eisenkot, leader of the centrist Yashar party, made the remarks during a recent closed-door meeting, according to Israel’s public broadcaster KAN, which cited unnamed sources.

“I will not sit in a government led by Netanyahu,” Eisenkot was quoted as saying.

He said he would accept an invitation to meet Trump but would reject U.S. involvement in negotiations over Israel’s next government.

“If Trump calls me, I will respect the president and come, but I will insist that this is an internal Israeli matter and will avoid interference,” Eisenkot said, according to KAN.

His position comes amid reports that Trump allies have discussed the possibility of a unity government involving Netanyahu and Eisenkot with Israeli officials.

The Washington Post reported before the election that Netanyahu had told U.S. officials he viewed Eisenkot as his preferred coalition partner if hostilities with Iran resumed. Netanyahu has promoted the possibility of a broader coalition while insisting that he remain prime minister.

The October 27 election left neither Netanyahu nor his Jewish-led opponents with a parliamentary majority. Netanyahu’s bloc secured 53 seats in the 120-member Knesset, while opposition parties won 48 and the two Arab-led lists secured 19.

Naftali Bennett’s Together party, Yair Golan’s Democrats and Avigdor Liberman’s Yisrael Beytenu have said they will recommend Eisenkot to President Isaac Herzog to form the next government.

Backing from the two Arab lists could theoretically give Eisenkot recommendations from 67 lawmakers, but that would not by itself guarantee a governing coalition. Liberman has ruled out joining a government that includes or depends on Arab parties, while also rejecting a unity government with Netanyahu.

The competing positions leave Israel facing difficult coalition negotiations as Herzog prepares to consult parliamentary factions before deciding whom to task with forming the next government.