To win back Americans' hearts, Israel should form a government with Arab parties
An Eisenkot-led government backed by Arab parties could help Israel regain U.S. bipartisan support – but only if both sides are willing to compromise
Israeli President Isaac Herzog will announce on Sunday which candidate he will task with forming a new government following the October 27 election, in which neither Netanyahu nor Eisenkot secured enough votes for a majority. Sixty-seven parliamentary members recommended Eisenkot, while 46 backed Netanyahu, with seven abstaining.
Both Arab-majority lists won an unprecedented 19 seats, positioning them as potential kingmakers if Eisenkot's opposition chooses to work with them. United Torah Judaism, an ultra-Orthodox party that previously backed Netanyahu, declined to recommend him for a third time as premier, though it did not back Eisenkot either. Both parties have emphasized sorting out the status of Torah students in their next government.
Netanyahu's bloc holds 53 seats, compared to 48 for Eisenkot's bloc. Arab-majority parties gained historic ground due to dissatisfaction with Netanyahu's government and concerns over racism and discrimination against Arab Israelis.
Written by urgent.news from The Jakarta Post's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
This story
This is one outlet's version. Read the fullest account.
