The Israeli Prime Minister-designate, leader of the Yashar Party, Gadi Eisenkot, announced his bloc’s agreement to elect a member of his party, Matan Kahane, as a candidate for the position of Speaker of the Israeli Parliament (Knesset). The leaders of the “Change” camp parties welcomed him and decided to support him in the position, in addition to the Arab parties that are supposed to vote for him, which makes his path to the presidency of the Knesset almost settled.
On Tuesday, with the opening of the new Knesset, the camp presented the signatures of 67 members demanding the replacement of the current Knesset Speaker, Amir Ohana, who will be obligated to call for a vote on this step within a week at most.
It does not seem that Eisenkot chose to give in to Kahane in vain; Kahane's CV shows legal knowledge built on the basis of his master's degree in law, as well as his many years of experience as a member of the Knesset, in addition to holding a previous ministerial position.
Kahane is supposed to be the spearhead of the “Change Bloc” in the Knesset, within the framework of getting rid of the men, laws, and legacy of Benjamin Netanyahu’s government in the Knesset, in a difficult and complex mission.
Kahane said, on Tuesday, after Eisenkot announced his selection for the position, “The position of Speaker of the Knesset is a very important position. I am happy with the trust Gadi (Eisenkot) has placed in me by choosing me as a candidate for this position. We have to wait a little while until the Knesset members actually choose me.” The Speaker of the Knesset leads the work of the General Assembly, and decides on proposals submitted for the agenda, draft laws, and topics for discussion, including interpellations. The Speaker of the Knesset is responsible for managing the sessions of the General Assembly, putting proposals to a vote, and announcing the results. He also has the powers to maintain order and discipline. In addition to chairing the Knesset, he manages its administrative and financial affairs and budget and represents it before external and international institutions and bodies. In the event of the absence of the Head of State, the Speaker of the Knesset assumes the duties of acting presidency. Many are also counting on the Knesset and its presidency to form an official investigation committee into the October 7, 2023 attack led by Hamas against Israel. Netanyahu rejected calls to conduct an official investigation into it, for fear of political condemnation of his government, and for 3 years held the army responsible for the failure. Who is Matan Kahane?
Matan Kahane was born in Haifa in 1972. He moved with his family to New York City at an early age, then returned with the family to “Beit Gamliel” in central Israel, which is a cooperative farm, and he still lives there. Kahane served as a combat soldier in the Sayeret Matkal unit, an elite unit that reports directly to the General Staff of the Israeli Army, from August 1990 to January 1993. He then received training in the Air Force as a fighter pilot, and became a pilot of combat aircraft. Kahane became a pilot in 1994 and in 2011, he was appointed commander of the 116th Squadron, and in 2013 he was appointed commander of the 109th Squadron. During his period of service, he participated in operations in the Gaza Strip and the 2006 Second Lebanon War. In Gaza specifically, he participated as a pilot in operations “Cast Lead” (2008 - 2009) and “Pillar of Defense” (2012). And “Protective Edge” 2014 in the Gaza Strip. Kahane was discharged from the army in 2018 with the rank of colonel, after which he graduated from Bar-Ilan University. According to the Knesset website, he holds a bachelor’s and master’s degrees in law. Political biography
The political biography of Matan Kahane shows that in 2019, he joined the “New Right” party led by Naftali Bennett, and was elected to the 22nd Knesset as part of the joint “Yamina” list, of which Bennett was also one of its most prominent leaders. In June 2021, Matan Kahane was appointed Minister of Religious Services in the government of Bennett and Yair Lapid. Then, in May 2022, Kahane resigned from his ministerial position and returned to the Knesset, before briefly assuming the position of Deputy Minister of Religious Services. In August 2022, Kahane joined the “official camp” list led by Benny Gantz, then in July 2025 he resigned from the Knesset, and two months later he joined the “Ya’shar” party led by Gadi Eisenkot. He was elected to the Knesset last month. Representatives of the countries of Sudan, Somalia and Indonesia received a new batch of their countries’ nationals residing in the “Roj” (Spring) camp located in the far north-east of the Syrian province of Al-Hasakah, which includes families of ISIS terrorist organization fighters, and it is the last camp for families of the extremist organization’s fighters in Syria. This came during a visit they made three days ago, accompanied by a joint delegation from the Syrian government internal security forces and representatives of the government, according to an activist in the governorate. The activist considered the repeated entry of government security delegations into the camp during this period as an indication that the Syrian government would take over its administration from the dissolved “Syrian Democratic Forces” (SDF). Activist Ibrahim Al-Halabi, from Al-Hasakah, explained to Asharq Al-Awsat that the delegation of the security forces and the government met with a group of women living in the camp, who explained the situation, in the presence of representatives from the countries of Sudan, Somalia and Indonesia, in order to receive a batch of nationals from their countries in preparation for transporting them there. In the “Roj” camp, which is the last camp for the families of ISIS fighters, after the new Syrian government closed the “Al-Hawl” camp, also located in the Hasakah countryside, there are about 750 tents inhabited by 2,200 women and children holding various foreign and Arab nationalities, including Turkish, Russian, British, French, German, Australian, Indonesian, Sudanese, Somali, Tunisian, and other nationalities. Other Arabic. This is not the first batch of Sudanese, Somali and Indonesian nationals to be removed from Roj camp and returned to their countries. Several batches have been returned since 2022. Al-Halabi stated that the number of those handed over to their government representatives in this batch is 12 Indonesian women with their children, 30 Somali women, and between 3 and 9 Sudanese women. Dual nationality
He indicated that the previous batches that were deported were of holders of single Sudanese and Somali nationality, noting that there are Sudanese and Somali women who hold dual nationalities, and he gave as an example those who hold Sudanese-British nationality, and Somali-British nationality. Al-Halabi pointed out that this caused a problem; Some women refused to surrender themselves to the Sudanese government, demanding that they surrender themselves to the British government. Therefore, so far, Somali and Sudanese women with dual nationality have not been deported. Al-Halabi stated that this period witnessed the entry of government internal security forces into the “Roj” camp several times, where residents of Australian, Sudanese, Somali, and Indonesian nationalities, and from the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, were removed. The last visit left the camp residents with great satisfaction, as evidenced by the gathering of women and children around the delegation. He explained that this repeated entry of government internal security forces may have left reassuring messages to the residents, after what they had been exposed to over the past years. Al-Halabi considered this security and government entry into the Roj camp an indication that the government would take over its administration. However, it is likely that the process of security protection for the camp will be supervised by SDF elements merging with the government internal security forces according to the merger agreement signed in January 2026 between the Syrian government and the SDF, while there will be government supervision by departments assigned to do so. Last February, the Syrian government took control of Al-Hawl camp, which was considered the largest detention camp for families of ISIS fighters in the country, and is classified as the most dangerous camp in the world. It included tens of thousands of families of different nationalities, after it was taken from the SDF, which was managing it along with the Roj camp. The Syrian government then worked to empty the “Al-Hawl” camp of its foreign residents, and transferred them to a camp located near the city of Akhtarin in the northern countryside of Aleppo. After the closure of Al-Hawl camp, Roj camp emerged as the second most prominent and dangerous camp that includes women and widows of ISIS members of various foreign nationalities. But activists in northern Syria point out that to this day it is not known when the “Roj” camp will be closed, or where its residents will go after that. The head of the Free Patriotic Movement, MP Gebran Bassil, proposed the formation of an “international implementation and guarantee force” in southern Lebanon, which includes the five permanent members of the Security Council, according to a new resolution guaranteeing complete Israeli withdrawal within 3 months, and the exclusivity of weapons in the hands of the Lebanese state within a year, without making either commitment a condition for the other. Bassil's proposal came after his meeting with the President of the Republic, Joseph Aoun, at Baabda Palace, at the head of a delegation from the "Movement", at the beginning of a tour of officials to present the proposal and place it in the custody of the Lebanese authorities, in preparation for requesting a resolution from the Security Council. Israeli withdrawal and arms exclusivity
Bassil said, “Sovereignty requires Israel’s withdrawal and the Lebanese state’s commitment to arms exclusivity, while the approval of a national security strategy remains an internal process,” considering that Lebanon needs to get out of the waiting state, in light of the possibility of renewed war and the expected vacuum after the end of the UNIFIL mission at the end of the year. He spoke of an “international vacuum” after the practical decline in reliance on previous international resolutions, following the framework agreement. This requires a new decision requested by the Lebanese constitutional authorities. He explained that the participation of the United States, Britain, France, Russia, and China in the proposed force aims to ensure international balance and prevent attacks from Lebanese territory, thus taking away from Israel the pretext of protecting its security. He stressed that the Israeli withdrawal is not linked to the Hezbollah weapons file, without this relieving the state from the obligation of weapons exclusivity. He also called for the development of a defense or national security strategy within an internal Lebanese framework, in line with the oath letter and the ministerial statement, provided that its approval is not a condition for withdrawal. Bassil suggested including neutralizing Lebanon from axis conflicts and wars in an international resolution. He stressed the pursuit of a truce that leads to lasting calm, leading to a just peace when its conditions are met and Lebanon’s rights are guaranteed, rejecting the use of the occupation to impose normalization. He pointed out that if the Presidents of the Republic and the Government approve of the proposal, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs could be assigned to present it to the Security Council and consult on it with the countries concerned. Wild encounter
Bassil moved to Ain al-Tineh, where he met with Speaker of Parliament Nabih Berri, and the delegation presented a proposal to form an international force in light of the inability to extend UNIFIL for a new term. The research included political and field developments and national and legislative affairs. In the same context, a member of the “Strong Lebanon Bloc,” MP Ghassan Atallah, affirmed that “the Free Patriotic Movement’s initiative to establish an international guarantee and implementation force in southern Lebanon stems from reaching an internal consensus before presenting it to the international community,” considering that “the problem with the Lebanese authority is that it is always waiting for external initiatives, while what is required is that the Lebanese agree on a vision for the solution, and present it themselves to the outside world.” Atallah explained, in a statement to Asharq Al-Awsat: “Lebanon cannot be asked to implement all of its obligations while Israel continues to occupy its lands,” stressing that “the state’s restoration of its authority requires Israel’s withdrawal and enabling the Lebanese army to deploy in the areas it vacates.” He pointed out that “the proposal stipulates that the five permanent members of the Security Council, namely the United States, France, Britain, Russia, and China, will sponsor the agreement and ensure its implementation, by monitoring the Israeli withdrawal and army deployment, handing over weapons throughout Lebanese territory, and the return of the displaced and reconstruction, with the commitment of these countries to pressure Israel to implement its pledges.” Atallah warned of “the vacuum that may arise after the withdrawal of UNIFIL forces, in light of the continued Israeli presence and the absence of guarantees for its withdrawal,” saying: “The war has stopped in the suburbs and Beirut, but the south is still subjected to systematic destruction on a daily basis, while its people remain displaced within their country, and the destruction of homes, farms, and villages continues.” He pointed out that “the Free Patriotic Movement’s tour of the President of the Republic, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, and the Prime Minister aims to obtain an official consensus on the initiative, in preparation for the Foreign Minister’s move on it to the United Nations, and to communicate with the five countries to persuade them to sponsor the agreement and ensure its implementation.” He explained that “the initiative sets a deadline of 3 months for Israeli withdrawal, coinciding with the deployment of the Lebanese army, the beginning of the return of people to their villages, and the establishment of control arrangements that prevent the entry of weapons, provided that the exclusivity of weapons in the hands of the state over all Lebanese territory is completed within one year,” considering that “the guarantee of the five countries to implement these commitments constitutes an entry point to avoid the vacuum expected after the withdrawal of (UNIFIL).”
