Israel’s former military chief Gadi Eisenkot started the tough task of forming a government on Sunday, reaching out to Benjamin Netanyahu’s allies as he said the veteran prime minister had brought the country to a historic crisis.
asserted
minister → start → crisis
Eisenkot, 66, the leader of the Yashar party, who has vowed to bridge Israel’s deep polarisation under Netanyahu, formally received a mandate from the president, Isaac Herzog, who gave him 28 days to form a government despite his bloc lacking a clear majority.
asserted
bloc → vow → majority
“We are in a state of emergency, approaching a point of no return for the state of Israel,” said Eisenkot, who had traded his usual all black for a suit and tie at a ceremony at the presidential office.
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who → approach → office
“We must form a national emergency government.
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We → form → government
This will require creative and unconventional political steps.”
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This → require → steps
Eisenkot faces significant challenges on the road to becoming prime minister.
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Eisenkot → face → road
He has three options: a power-sharing agreement with Netanyahu, support from Arab-led parties – something several members of his bloc do not support – or an agreement with the ultra-Orthodox parties, which demand military exemptions for their community.
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which → have → community
Eisenkot and Herzog acknowledged Israel’s growing isolation under Netanyahu, who is wanted by the international criminal court.
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who → acknowledge → court
In the US, Israel’s closest ally, Democrats on Tuesday swept the midterm elections, with calls to rein in Israel after the devastation in Gaza and the unpopular Iran war, which Netanyahu launched with Donald Trump.
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Netanyahu → sweep → Trump
Eisenkot said: “We are in the midst of a devastating diplomatic crisis.
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We → say → crisis
Even our closest friends and strategic allies are saying their relationship with Israel must be reassessed.”
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relationship → say → Israel
He appealed to Netanyahu’s Likud party as well as the far-right party of the finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich, to join him – but only with himself as prime minister.
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He → appeal → minister
“My door is open and my hand is extended, wholeheartedly and willingly, to anyone who understands the gravity of this moment,” he said.
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he → extend → moment
Should Eisenkot succeed in forming a coalition, he would take over as prime minister from Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-serving premier.
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he → succeed → Netanyahu
Eisenkot’s wide-ranging opposition bloc won 48 of the Israeli parliament’s 120 seats in the October elections, while Netanyahu’s camp secured 53, leaving neither with a majority.
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camp → range → majority
During party consultations with Herzog, Eisenkot received the endorsements of both Arab-majority lists, who could now play kingmakers after making unprecedented gains in the vote.
uncertain
who → receive → vote
Eisenkot has laid out a series of conditions for any Arab party to join his coalition, including recognition of Israel as a Jewish state and declaring the Palestinian militant group Hamas a terrorist organisation.
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group → lay → state
One of his partners, the more conservative Yisrael Beiteinu party, has already said it will not join a coalition with Arab-led parties.
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it → say → parties
Eisenkot, a former army chief, and his partners made equal military service a central part of their campaign.
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service → make → campaign
Specifically, they are seeking an end to the longstanding draft exemptions enjoyed by the ultra-Orthodox.
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they → seek → Orthodox
Netanyahu has repeatedly claimed the election was “stolen” by Arab parties, which rallied their supporters to vote in large numbers.
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which → claim → numbers
But he has offered little to no evidence to support the claims.
uncertain
he → offer → claims
Netanyahu is expected to continue his pressure tactics against Eisenkot, saying any alliance with the Arab parties would be an act of betrayal.
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alliance → expect → betrayal
Israel’s Shin Bet security agency has launched an investigation into possible foreign interference in the vote, but the country’s Central Elections Committee – and Herzog – say the vote was valid and even if wrongdoing was found, it did not have a significant impact on the result.
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it → launch → result
Netanyahu called for a “national unity” government with Eisenkot on Saturday night but it remains unclear whether the two rivals could agree on a power-sharing agreement.
uncertain
rivals → call → agreement
These types of coalition governments are notoriously fragile and often collapse.
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types → collapse → governments
Eisenkot, the military chief of staff from 2015 to 2019, has set out to unite Israelis after Netanyahu’s divisive tenure, under which the country moved sharply to the right.
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country → set → right
He has vowed to crack down on extremist West Bank settlers who have attacked Palestinians with impunity, decrying recent incidents as “Jewish terror” abetted by Netanyahu’s government.
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who → vow → government
He opposes the creation of a Palestinian state and has vowed to end Hamas’s rule in Gaza and destroy the Islamist movement’s military wing.
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He → oppose → wing
Commanding the military during the 2006 war with Hezbollah, Eisenkot devised the so-called “Dahiya doctrine”.
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Eisenkot → command → doctrine
The idea, named after a Beirut suburb heavily damaged in that war, involves Israel vowing to use massive force against civilian infrastructure in areas controlled by the Lebanese militant movement Hezbollah.
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Israel → name → movement
After his appointment, Eisenkot will have 28 days to come up with the 61 votes needed for a government.
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Eisenkot → have → government
If he comes up short, Herzog can provide a 14-day extension before he has to offer the mandate to someone else.
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he → come → someone
If neither side succeeds, Israel will head to fresh elections.
asserted
Israel → succeed → elections
The country held five elections between 2019 and 2022 owing to repeated deadlocks.
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country → hold → deadlocks
The Aporia
