From the Liveblog of
Wednesday, August 26, 2026
Winter, Eisenkot trade barbs about sitting together in future coalition; Winter said uninterested in safe slot on Likud slate
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleSam Sokol is a former political correspondent at The Times of Israel. He was previously a reporter for the Jerusalem Post, Jewish Telegraphic Agency and Haaretz. He is the author of "Putin’s Hybrid War and the Jews"
People of Israel chairman Ofer Winter slams Yashar chairman and former IDF chief of staff Gadi Eisenkot as they trade barbs about sitting in a potential future coalition together.
Eisenkot tells Channel 13 in an interview that he would not appoint the controversial former general as defense minister in a future government: “I think Ofer Winter is a good field commander. He was not part of the IDF’s strategic leadership command, nor did he hold senior roles.”
Hitting back in a video sent to reporters, Winter replies to Eisenkot that he has “already said that I have no intention of being part of your government, and I will do everything to ensure it does not come to fruition.”
“For years, I have opposed the security concept you led,” Winter says, arguing that “a strategic perceptual chasm lies between us.”
Winter has been the subject of controversy for more than a decade, and was released from the military in 2024 after being passed over for promotion.
Dimona Mayor Benny Bitton says in an interview with Channel 12 news tonight that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attempted to offer Winter a guaranteed spot on the Likud list weeks ago, but Winter refused to answer calls from Netanyahu’s office.
Winter, who said after the October 7 Hamas invasion that he would resign if he were prime minister, said at his campaign launch last night that the political arena must not remain unchanged in the wake of October 7.
The Times of Israel Community.