Consultations continue between the Israeli opposition parties to form a new government to succeed the government of Benjamin Netanyahu, amid indications of progress in the negotiations, as the leader of the opposition bloc, Gadi Eisenkot, expressed his optimism that he could be assigned the task, after 67 deputies supported his nomination. This coincided with the leader of the "Israel Our Home" party, Avigdor Lieberman, showing flexibility regarding the recruitment of religiously extremist Jews (Haredim), in a move that may open the way for an alliance with their parties, with President Isaac Herzog announcing his decision on Sunday.

Published on: 07/11/2026 - 11:07

The leader of the opposition bloc in the Israeli Knesset, Gadi Eisenkot, confirmed on Friday that he is making progress in his efforts to form a government to succeed Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government, expecting that President Isaac Herzog will assign him this task.

“We have made great progress and achieved breakthroughs, quietly and humbly, and a lot is still going on behind the scenes,” Eisenkot wrote on the X platform.

Herzog said Thursday that he would announce on Sunday the name of the representative who will be assigned to form a new government, after he completed his consultations with party leaders, noting that 67 representatives supported Eisenkot’s assignment.

This comes as a new opportunity appeared before the Israeli opposition on Friday to overthrow Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, after the leader of the “Israel Our Home” party, Avigdor Lieberman, one of the most prominent opposition leaders, showed flexibility regarding the recruitment of religiously extremist Jews (Haredim), which opened the door to an alliance with their parties that was previously excluded.

Neither Netanyahu nor his competitor Gadi Eisenkot were able to achieve a majority in the October 27 elections, in light of a sharp division in Israeli society over Netanyahu.

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Eisenkot expected that President Isaac Herzog would assign him to form the government when he announced his decision on Sunday.

“We have made great progress and achieved breakthroughs quietly and humbly, while a lot is still going on behind the scenes,” Eisenkot wrote on the X platform.

Yair Golan, the main leader of the left movement within the Azenkot bloc, also indicated progress, saying: “I am more optimistic than I was on Wednesday morning after the election results came out.”

Eisenkot can form a coalition if he cooperates with the Arab parties, whose number of seats has increased significantly in light of dissatisfaction with the policies of the extreme right-wing Netanyahu government.

But this possibility faces strong opposition from his partner in the opposition, Avigdor Lieberman, a former aide to Netanyahu who has become highly critical of him, but who adopts similar hard-line positions towards the Palestinians.

In turn, the leader of the "Israel Our Home" party, Avigdor Lieberman, said on Friday that he would not back down from his refusal to ally with the Arab-Israeli parties, calling for negotiations with the religiously extremist Jewish parties, despite his sharp criticism of them over the years due to their members evading military service.

Lieberman considered that the two most important goals were to remove Netanyahu and avoid holding new elections, stressing that the time had come to make concessions and "realize that trying to get everything entails the risk of losing everything."

He added in a statement posted on social media, "This also includes the issue of the conscription law."

He continued: "This is painful for me, and I know it is painful for many others as well. But in light of the many challenges we face today, the interest of the State of Israel and the Jewish people must be above all other considerations."

France 24/AFP

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