Gadi Eisenkot Invites Netanyahu’s Allies to Join Emergency Government After Receiving Coalition Mandate

Gadi Eisenkot, Israel’s former military chief and leader of the Yashar party, has called on lawmakers from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s own political camp to join a national emergency government after President Isaac Herzog formally tasked him with forming Israel’s next coalition on Sunday, November 8.

“We are in the midst of a destructive diplomatic crisis,” Eisenkot said at the President’s Residence in Jerusalem, warning that even Israel’s closest friends and strategic allies were reconsidering their relations with the country. He argued that unresolved wars and mounting domestic divisions made an immediate change of government essential.

“Seventy-four members of the Knesset no longer have confidence in the continuation of the outgoing government and the man who leads it,” he said. “This is the voice of the public. This is the decision of the people.”

That figure is not the number of lawmakers who endorsed Eisenkot. In presidential consultations, 67 of the Knesset’s 120 members recommended him, 46 backed Netanyahu and seven nominated neither. Herzog gave Eisenkot 28 days to assemble a coalition, with a possible 14-day extension.

“I am committed to using the mandate given to me here today to lead the formation of a national emergency government,” Eisenkot said. “Israel does not have the luxury of wasting time or returning to endless rounds of elections.”

He laid out four requirements for partners: recognizing Israel as a Jewish and democratic state; accepting the values of its Declaration of Independence; committing everyone to military, national or civilian service to strengthen the army; and recognizing Hamas as a terrorist organization while pledging to dismantle its military and governing capabilities.

“If you are prepared to sign on to the four principles I have presented, you are a potential partner in the national emergency government under my leadership,” Eisenkot said.

He appealed directly to members of Netanyahu’s Likud and the Religious Zionism party, saying that if they genuinely supported national unity, they should have no reason to reject a government led by him.

“My door is open and my hand is extended,” he told all Knesset factions.

Eisenkot also warned: “Anyone who tries to sabotage the formation of the government for personal rather than substantive reasons will be remembered in history as someone who failed to save Israel in a time of emergency.”

Securing the mandate does not guarantee a government. Eisenkot’s potential partners remain divided over conscription and whether a coalition could depend on support from Arab parties. Netanyahu remains caretaker prime minister while negotiations continue.