The Israeli opposition bloc led by Gadi Eisenkot met on Tuesday for the first time since the elections in Herzliya to discuss strategies for ousting Benjamin Netanyahu, the Prime Minister of Israel. This meeting took place as the election results ended inconclusively, and divisions regarding cooperation with Arab lawmakers are being raised.
Efforts to Form a New Government
At this meeting, Yair Lapid, the former Prime Minister and leader of the opposition in the previous parliament, stated that Netanyahu is supporting "extreme and dangerous efforts to discredit the elections." He added, "What we need to do now is focus on forming a government, as recent behaviors only remind us that we need to remove Netanyahu and his people from the Prime Minister's office."
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Lapid emphasized that Netanyahu and his allies have harmed the government and the people of Israel enough. In this election, none of the parties succeeded in gaining a majority. The diverse opposition bloc led by Eisenkot secured 48 seats, while Netanyahu's camp gained 53 seats, with 27 seats belonging to the Likud party.
Challenges and Different Opinions
Despite differing views on various issues, including the role of Arab lawmakers, all party leaders in the Eisenkot bloc have announced their support for him to form the next government. Public opinion polls before the elections showed that supporters of the Jewish opposition in Israel were hesitant about including Arab parties in the government, while right-wing Israelis were strongly opposed to this cooperation.
Yousef Jabari, the head of the largest Arab-centered party in the next parliament, has advised the opposition to accept the "political reality" and cooperate to oust Netanyahu. Arab Israelis, who are descendants of Palestinians who remained in the country after the establishment of Israel in 1948, now make up about 20% of the population.
During the election campaign, most of the major Jewish opposition parties rejected cooperation with Arab-centered lists due to a lack of shared values, particularly in the areas of security and national identity. However, Yair Golan, the head of the left-wing Democrats party, stated that it is racist to avoid cooperation with their Arab minority.
During the campaign, Netanyahu described Arab parties as unreliable and heightened concerns about the establishment of a Palestinian state. He also called on Monday for the formation of a "broad national government" without Arab parties, stating that since the Likud party is the largest, it should lead the future coalition.
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