Netanyahu and Eisenkot .. Unity Negotiations Collide with Impossible Conditions

Al-Taj News – The negotiating teams of the “Yashar” party, led by Gadi Eisenkot, and the Likud party are meeting on Sunday in an attempt to discuss the possibility of forming a national unity government in Israel, amid deep differences and mutual conditions that appear far from consensus, most notably Eisenkot’s insistence on assuming the premiership and excluding Itamar Ben Gvir, versus Likud’s adherence to Benjamin Netanyahu as prime minister first in any power-rotation agreement.

The meeting comes as Eisenkot enters the second week of the period granted to him to form the government, and after days of political tension, exchange of accusations between the two sides, and the cancellation of a previous meeting, before agreeing to hold an initial meeting to test the chances of reaching political understandings, according to what “Hebrew Channel 14” reported.

Differences over the identity of the next prime minister top the negotiation agenda; as Eisenkot insists on forming a government under his leadership and refuses to participate in a coalition led by Netanyahu, and also stipulates the exclusion of the “Jewish Power” party led by Itamar Ben Gvir, within what he describes as the necessity of breaking away from far-right forces.

In contrast, Likud rejects these conditions and insists that Netanyahu assume the premiership in the first phase of any rotation formula, as head of the largest party in the Knesset, and the party also affirms its readiness to negotiate with various parties wishing to join the government, with the exception of Arab parties.