Eisenkot denies claim he promised Bedouin leaders he’d bring Ra’am into government

Yashar leader Gadi Eisenkot denies a Channel 12 report claiming he promised Bedouin local authority heads that he would bring Mansour Abbas’s Islamist Ra’am party into a government led by him following the October 27 election.

The outlet cited local leaders who’d been at the event. Tuba-Zangariyye council head Mueid al-Heib, who attended the meeting, told Radio Nas that Eisenkot said he would not govern with Bezalel Smotrich or Itamar Ben Gvir, but that contacts were underway with Ra’am and he would work to bring the party into his government.

Eisenkot and Yashar vehemently deny the claims, calling them “a complete lie” and insisting the remarks “were never made, not even by implication.”

פרסום ראשון: גדי איזנקוט הבטיח במהלך פגישה שקיים אמש עם פורום ראשי הרשויות הבדואיות בצפון לצרף את רע״מ לממשלה הבאה בראשותו. שני ראשי רשויות שהשתתפו בפגישה אישרו את הדברים pic.twitter.com/I9VUW8MxMM

— מוחמד מג'אדלה محمد مجادلة (@mmagadli) September 16, 2026

Yashar publishes recordings of yesterday’s meeting with the local authority heads, saying the composition of a future government was never discussed.

The party reiterates its position that potential coalition partners must meet “the three fundamental principles that are well known to the public,” including recognition of Israel as a Jewish and democratic state, acceptance of the values of the Declaration of Independence, and universal military or civil national service, as well as recognition of Hamas as a terrorist organization.

“We have nothing to hide,” Eisenkot writes on X, tagging Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, as he posts a video of the meeting. “Take an example. This is how it’s done. What about the full [war] protocols? We’re waiting.”

The jab alludes to demands for the release of records relating to Netanyahu’s conduct surrounding October 7, as well as his opposition to the establishment of a state commission of inquiry into the failures surrounding the attack.

The dispute comes as the presumed anti-Netanyahu bloc, led by Yashar’s Eisenkot, continues to poll several seats short of a majority, fueling speculation that Ra’am could provide the additional support needed to form a government. The prospect has become a central line of attack by Netanyahu and his right-wing allies against Eisenkot, as they campaign against the inclusion of Arab parties in the next government.