Gadi Eisenkot Denies Promising to Include Arab Party in Government

Several Bedouin local authority heads in northern Israel claim that Gadi Eisenkot, chairman of the National Unity Party, promised them he would include the Arab party Ra'am in his future government. These local leaders, who met with Eisenkot on Wednesday, stated that Eisenkot also indicated he would not include far-right politicians Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich in his government, and that he was in contact with Ra'am to bring them into a coalition he would lead.

However, the National Unity Party vehemently denied these claims, issuing a statement calling them "lies and falsehoods." The party asserted that such statements were "never made, not even by implication." They reiterated their coalition principles, which require partners to recognize Israel's Declaration of Independence, its status as a Jewish and democratic state, and to serve all its citizens. Furthermore, they emphasized that parties not recognizing Hamas as a terrorist organization that Israel must destroy would not be part of any government they form.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reacted on social media, predicting that Eisenkot would form a "left-wing government with Yair Golan, [Avigdor] Liberman, and the Arab parties." Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana also commented, calling the alleged promise an "alarm bell" and stating that Eisenkot "has no government without the Muslim Brotherhood."

Earlier reports from the National Unity Party mentioned a meeting with eight Bedouin local authority heads in Zarzir, who expressed support for Eisenkot's bid for prime minister. Attendees included the heads of local councils from Zarzir, Basmat Tab'un, Bir al-Maksur, Al-Battuf, Shibli - Umm al-Ghanam, Tuba-Zangariyye, Bu'eine Nujeidat, and Ka'abiyye-Taba'ash.