WorldPosted at: Nov 5 2026 10:34PM


Israel's Arab-led Joint List coalition backs Gadi Eisenkot for premiership, giving opposition 67 recommendations

Jerusalem, Nov 5 (UNI) Israel's Arab-led Joint List has announced that it will recommend Yashar party chairman Gadi Eisenkot to President Isaac Herzog as the country's next prime minister, strengthening the opposition's efforts to replace Benjamin Netanyahu's government.
The decision, unanimously approved by the alliance's three constituent factions, brings the number of lawmakers backing Eisenkot to 67 in the incoming 120-member Knesset, giving him the support of a parliamentary majority at the recommendation stage. However, the endorsements do not necessarily mean that all supporting parties will join his eventual coalition.
The Joint List said its decision reflected public demands to prevent Netanyahu and his government from returning to power. It also argued that backing Eisenkot was important despite what it described as the opposition's reluctance to confront Netanyahu's political approach and challenge incitement against Arab citizens.
"Although Eisenkot has received more recommendations than Netanyahu, we believe it is important to widen the gap between them," the alliance said, noting that its move could improve the prospects of replacing the government and reduce the likelihood of a national unity arrangement that would keep Netanyahu in office.
A Joint List delegation subsequently presented its recommendation to Herzog, with party chairman Yousef Jabareen saying the decision reflected the Arab community's demand for political change amid concerns over discrimination, racism, crime and exclusion under the outgoing government.
"Our public really went out to vote for change," Jabareen said.
He acknowledged significant disagreements with Eisenkot, including over his political positions and what he described as his failure to take a sufficiently firm stand against incitement targeting Arab citizens during the election campaign.
"We are not choosing between good and better, but between what we see as bad and even worse," he said.
Jabareen also said the Joint List would seek alternatives based on peace rather than military action, making clear that the alliance would not participate in a military operation.
"There are no military solutions," he said. "We are trying to promote alternatives based on peace."
Joint List lawmaker Ahmad Tibi said the alliance was prepared to support an Eisenkot-led minority government from outside, acting as a parliamentary blocking bloc, but did not want to provide temporary backing to an administration that could collapse within months.
"If we support a government from outside, we don't want to give it a safety net only to bring it down a month, two months or three months later," he said.
Tibi also highlighted the alliance's parliamentary influence, pointing out that the Joint List holds 11 seats.
"No parliamentary or political move in the Knesset can happen without the Joint List," he said.
The October 27 election produced a fragmented Knesset, with neither Netanyahu's right-wing bloc nor the Jewish-led opposition securing an outright majority. Netanyahu's coalition won 53 seats, while Eisenkot's opposition bloc secured 48. The Joint List won 11 seats and the separate Arab-led Ra'am party secured eight, giving the two formations a combined record 19 seats.
The high turnout among Arab voters and the strong performance of the two parties have made their support central to efforts to form the next government. However, Eisenkot's political partners, including B'Yachad leader Naftali Bennett and Yisrael Beytenu chairman Avigdor Liberman, have previously expressed reservations about relying on Arab parties to sustain a coalition.
Being in the unique position of kingmakers, the Joint List's recommendation therefore strengthens Eisenkot's position in the consultations led by Herzog, though substantial political disagreements continue to remain regarding the form and composition of any future government.
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