President of Israel makes official choice of Netanyahu's rival to try to form new government

The President of Israel, Isaac Herzog, made official, this Sunday (8), the choice for Gadi Eisenkot, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's main opponent, to try to form a new government.

The choice was made because Eisenkot's party was the one that garnered the most votes in the elections held in the country in October. The election, however, left the two politicians without sufficient support to take power.

According to the local newspaper "Times of Israel", the official ceremony should take place next Sunday (8), at 5pm local time (12pm Brasília time). Eisenkot will then have 28 days to form a government. If necessary, Herzog can grant him an extension of up to 14 days.

"This is the time to form a national emergency government. I will do everything in my power to ensure we rise to the responsibility," Eisenkot wrote in X, moments after announcing his victory.

The former military officer and leader of the opposition to Netanyahu received the endorsement of the main Arab-Israeli parties last Friday (6). With its combined numbers, the opposition party received support from 67 deputies in the Knesset, the Israeli parliament.

61 of the 120 seats are needed to form a government.

The election held on October 27th ended with neither of the two main blocs achieving the majority needed to govern. Netanyahu's Likud party received the most votes and won 27 seats. But the alliance of right-wing and religious parties linked to the prime minister was left with 53 seats in parliament.

The opposition bloc linked to Eisenkot, leader of the Yashar party, obtained 48.

The result also marked the advancement of parties representing Israel's Arab population. The group's two main forces together won 19 seats, a record.

The Joint List had 11 vacancies.

The Ra'am party elected eight deputies.

The growth came amid record turnout among Arab voters, who represent around 21% of the country's population.

The two parties announced support for Eisenkot during consultations with President Isaac Herzog. As a result, the former chief of staff now has the endorsement of 67 parliamentarians, above the minimum necessary to govern.

The support, however, does not mean that the Arab parties will be part of an eventual coalition. Eisenkot has already stated that he does not intend to include them in the government.

The son of Moroccan immigrants, Eisenkot, 66, could be Israel's first prime minister from the Mizrahi community, made up of Jews whose families originate from the Middle East and North Africa.

Discreet and averse to exposure in the press, Eisenkot only entered politics in 2022. He briefly joined Netanyahu's war cabinet after the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, but later returned to the opposition.

As an opponent, he publicly criticized Netanyahu's leadership, including his conduct of the military offensive in the Gaza Strip. Eisenkot also promised that he would not participate in a government led by the current prime minister.

Eisenkot's political trajectory is also marked by his family's personal losses since 2023. One of his sons and two nephews died in combat in the Gaza Strip.

During the election campaign, Eisenkot highlighted his experience in the security field. He cited the so-called "Dahiya Doctrine", a strategy that envisages disproportionate military responses to attacks. The former general employed this approach when he commanded operations during the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah, an Iran-backed group operating in Lebanon.

Eisenkot also criticized Israeli settler violence against Palestinians, which has increased since 2023 and raised tensions in Israel's relations with Western countries.

He also opposes Netanyahu's far-right allies, Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich. The two have already been the target of sanctions by some Western countries for statements considered to incite violence against Palestinians.