Progress Reported in Secret Talks Between Eisenkot and Haredi Parties

A senior official from the "Change Bloc" coalition reported on Wednesday that initial contacts between Gadi Eisenkot, chairman of the Yisrael Beiteinu party and candidate for prime minister, and the Haredi parties have seen "positive progress." According to the source, a discreet channel exists between Eisenkot and the Haredi parties, facilitating discussions aimed at exploring potential cooperation for forming a government. It is believed that Avigdor Lieberman, chairman of Yisrael Beiteinu, is not involved in these specific negotiations, despite meeting with United Torah Judaism chairman Yaakov Asher on Wednesday. Lieberman's conveyed message to his bloc partners is that if Eisenkot succeeds in bringing United Torah Judaism into the government, Shas will likely follow. The underlying assumption is that if Benjamin Netanyahu does not serve as prime minister and the "Change Bloc" can secure a stable coalition, Shas would also join.

However, parties within the "Change Bloc" face challenges in reconciling their liberal and sometimes anti-Haredi platforms with the prospect of Haredi inclusion. Parties such as Democrats, Yisrael Beiteinu, Yisrael Beiteinu, and Hatnuah campaigned on liberal agendas concerning religion and state, promising significant reforms. To include Haredi parties, these factions may need to compromise substantially on their core tenets. For instance, the Democrats had pledged legislation on issues like public transportation on Shabbat, civil marriage, and the elimination of gender segregation in academia. A source from the Democrats stated, "There is still a long way to go before a government with the Haredi parties is formed, so at this stage, we are continuing as usual."

Meanwhile, sources close to Benjamin Netanyahu have reportedly sent messages to Eisenkot suggesting that if discussions begin on forming a unity government between Netanyahu and the "Change Bloc," Netanyahu's Likud party would not insist on including Otzma Yehudit. Prime Minister Netanyahu has recently intensified calls for unity with the "Change Bloc" parties, possibly due to the assessment that Eisenkot might succeed in forming a government and displace him. This comes despite Netanyahu's campaign promises to retain his partners, specifically naming Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich. Netanyahu now appears to recognize the difficulty of upholding this promise in a unity government scenario and has begun signaling that Ben-Gvir might not be included. A "Change Bloc" official questioned how this aligns with Netanyahu's pledge to Ben-Gvir, receiving the response that "there is already international criticism of Ben-Gvir's conduct. He simply will not join; he will not be part of the government."