Netanyahu vs Eisenkot: Israel Parties Split Ahead of Herzog Pick
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MENAFNReligious Zionism and Shas urged Herzog to give Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the task of forming a coalition. Yisrael Beiteinu backed Gadi Eisenkot, leader of the opposition Yashar party. Ra’am, also known as the United Arab List and led by Mansour Abbas, has decided to recommend Eisenkot ahead of its Thursday meeting with Herzog, according to the daily. The ultra-Orthodox (Haredi) United Torah Judaism alliance will not recommend anyone.
Herzog launched the consultations with parliamentary factions at the President’s Residence in Jerusalem after receiving the election’s official results.
Pro-Netanyahu parties go first
Religious Zionism, led by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, was the first to meet Herzog. Its delegation, headed by lawmaker Orit Strock, named Netanyahu. Representatives of the Haredi Shas party, led by Aryeh Deri, also backed the prime minister. During the meeting, Shas lawmaker Yinon Azulay defended his party’s opposition to drafting students at Jewish religious seminaries.
Yisrael Beiteinu, led by Avigdor Lieberman, threw its weight behind Eisenkot. Its lawmaker Oded Forer told Herzog the party would not join a government reliant on Arab parties’ support.
“It is impossible to expect us to sit in a government that would be dependent on parties that are unwilling to recognize Hamas as a terrorist organization,” Forer said, according to the daily.
Arab parties could tip the balance
Ofer Cassif, a lawmaker from the Joint List, led by Yousef Jabareen, told a news agency the alliance would likely recommend Eisenkot when it meets Herzog on Thursday. He said internal discussions on its position were continuing.
Netanyahu’s bloc secured 53 seats in the 120-seat Knesset, including seven from United Torah Judaism. Opposition parties aligned with Eisenkot won 48. The Arab Joint List took 11 seats and Ra’am won eight. A majority requires 61.
Should the Joint List and Ra’am join the 48-seat opposition bloc in backing Eisenkot, factions holding 67 seats would recommend him for the mandate. Whether they would then support an Eisenkot-led government would hinge on later negotiations.
Herzog will choose who gets the mandate once the consultations conclude. The chosen lawmaker will have 28 days to assemble a government, with a possible extension of up to 14 days.
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