Opposition Parties Agree to Recommend Eisenkot for Prime Minister

Opposition party leaders in Israel have agreed to recommend Gadi Eisenkot, head of the Yashar party, to form the next government. The agreement was reached during a meeting on Tuesday, with the leaders stating they would formally make their recommendation to Israeli President Yitzhak Herzog as soon as possible to avoid further elections. Negotiating teams will immediately begin working on the broad outlines and agreements for the 38th government. The parties emphasized their coordination to replace the "October 7th government" with a "national emergency government" and to implement the parliamentary majority in the Knesset. They also discussed what they described as a "dangerous and disturbing campaign of delegitimization" by the Likud party and Netanyahu against the election results and the Central Elections Committee, vowing to defend the democratic process. The meeting, which lasted an hour, preceded the round of recommendations to President Herzog. The opposition leaders also decided to appoint a new Knesset Speaker to replace the current one, Amir Ohana. Representatives from families affected by the October 7th events attended the meeting, urging the opposition to form a government of change based on the election results. Naftali Bennett, head of the Bayahad list, stressed the urgency of forming a "Zionist correction government" to implement military service reform and state repair, pledging his party's full support for Eisenkot. Current Opposition Leader Yair Lapid stated that the recent behavior serves as a reminder of the need to remove Netanyahu from the Prime Minister's office.