Eisenkot vows to swiftly utilize Knesset majority ‘against Oct. 7 government,’ lays out legislative priorities

Yashar leader Gadi Eisenkot vows to swiftly exercise the new Knesset’s parliamentary majority, declaring that Israelis voted decisively against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government.

“No matter how you look at the numbers, a majority of Israeli citizens, by a margin of more than half a million votes, voted against the government of October 7 and draft evasion, and in favor of change,” Eisenkot says in a statement, pledging to immediately advance legislation establishing a state commission of inquiry into the failures that led to the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led onslaught, introduce mandatory service for all Israelis and repeal the judicial overhaul laws passed by the outgoing government.

“Do not let anyone mislead you: In the State of Israel, it is the Knesset that gives its confidence to the government, not the other way around,” he stresses, asserting that the election results are clear, “even as some are working to cast doubt on them.”

His remarks come as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his allies have called into question Tuesday’s election results by citing unsubstantiated allegations of foreign interference, after losing their parliamentary majority.

Amid reports that Netanyahu could launch a war with Iran to prolong his hold on power, Eisenkot warns that until a new government is sworn in, he will support military operations “only in cases involving direct and immediate threats against Israel that cannot wait.”

Eisenkot also reiterates his goal of forming a broad “Zionist and statesmanlike government,” saying any lawmaker willing to accept his longstanding conditions “is a potential partner,” while stressing the need for an “extraordinary effort” to avoid another election and “yet another prolonged political crisis.”