Eisenkot vows to end Hamas rule in Gaza within 18 months of becoming PM

By Ariela Karmel

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Ariela Karmel is a political correspondent at The Times of Israel. She previously reported for Calcalist and Haaretz. She holds an MA in Middle Eastern and African History from Tel Aviv University and a BA in Political Science from the University of British Columbia.

Yashar chair Gadi Eisenkot delivers a campaign statement from the Gaza border, on October 15, 2026. (Yashar)

Former IDF chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot pledges to end Hamas rule in the Gaza Strip within 18 months of taking office as prime minister, accusing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of failing to achieve his own war objectives three years after the October 7 massacre.

“Within 18 months of taking office as prime minister, Hamas will no longer rule the Gaza Strip. We will bring about the destruction of Hamas’s military wing,” Eisenkot pledges in a statement delivered at the Gaza border.

The Yashar chair says this will be achieved either through US President Donald Trump’s Gaza framework to demilitarize and rebuild Gaza, which was accepted by the Netanyahu government, or through military action.

Despite three years of war, Hamas remains in control of roughly a third of the Gaza Strip and retains military capabilities, even as Israel holds more than 60% of the territory, according to IDF figures from June.

“As long as Benjamin Netanyahu remains in power, Hamas will remain in power,” Eisenkot charges, accusing the prime minister of squandering unprecedented domestic and international legitimacy for military action while allowing Hamas to remain in control of Gaza and rebuild its capabilities.

Likud responds by asking: “How will you defeat Hamas without getting permission from your partners Mansour [Abbas] and [Ahmad] Tibi?” referring to the leaders of the Arab-majority parties Ra’am and Ta’al, respectively.

With the Netanyahu-led bloc lacking a clear path to forming a government, Likud has made the prospect of an Eisenkot-led government relying on Arab parties a central campaign attack, despite most parties in Eisenkot’s bloc ruling out such cooperation. Eisenkot himself has said that no Arab party currently meets his criteria for joining a coalition.

“For 17 years, Netanyahu and Likud have been deceiving Israeli citizens and strengthening Hamas,” Yashar says in response. “If you had focused a little more on your job and a little less on drafting talking points, perhaps October 7 could have been prevented.”