Israeli caretaker Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu renewed his call on Saturday for a national unity government with his rival Gadi Eisenkot, saying in a video statement that a meeting between them on Thursday had strengthened his conviction that only such a government can guarantee Israel’s security, and inviting Eisenkot to meet “in one room, without preconditions”. Eisenkot, the former army chief whom President Isaac Herzog has tasked with forming a government, dismissed the appeal within minutes, saying Netanyahu knows he lost the election and that the call for negotiations while talks are already under way is a trick that does not work on him. Neither side won a majority in the October 27 election: Netanyahu’s right-wing and religious bloc holds 53 of the Knesset’s 120 seats, Eisenkot’s four-party bloc 48, and Arab-led parties a record 19; Eisenkot has 28 days, extendable by 14, to form a government, and the Knesset elects its speaker on Tuesday.
Netanyahu renews unity government call, Eisenkot dismisses it
Caretaker Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu renewed his call on Saturday for a national unity government with Gadi Eisenkot, the rival tasked with forming Israel's next government, and Eisenkot dismissed the appeal within minutes as a ploy.
Why it matters: Neither bloc won a majority in the October 27 election, and Netanyahu's public appeal, rejected on the spot, shows the government-formation fight hardening ahead of Eisenkot's 28-day deadline and Tuesday's Knesset speaker vote.
Data as of Al Jazeera report of November 14, 2026, read in full in this run via the estate browser route after the direct fetch was blocked; Arab News carried the same statements the same day. Seat counts and the formation timetable are as reported by Al Jazeera. Developing item.
Sources
- Netanyahu says only a unity government can guarantee Israel's security - Al Jazeera - 2026-11-14
- Netanyahu calls for Israeli unity government, Eisenkot dismisses 'tricks' - Arab News - 2026-11-14