Israeli president picks Gadi Eisenkot, Netanyahu rival, to try to form government

Israel’s president, Isaac Herzog, has tasked Gadi Eisenkot with trying to form a new government after the Oct. 27 election left Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu without a clear majority. Eisenkot, Netanyahu’s strongest rival and a former military chief, was chosen because he received the most endorsements, including from leaders of Israel’s Arab minority. Netanyahu’s religious-nationalist bloc won 53 seats in the 120-seat Knesset—short of the 61 needed—despite Likud taking 27. Eisenkot has 28 days, with a possible 14-day extension, to build a coalition, though analysts see three unlikely routes: minority government, coalition with ultra-Orthodox parties, or a unity deal with Netanyahu.