Bennett says he is quietly helping Eisenkot build a 'Zionist government'

Former prime minister Naftali Bennett, who leads the B'Yachad party, has said his faction is working out of public view to help Gadi Eisenkot put together what Bennett called a "Zionist government of repair". The Times of Israel reported that the remarks came in a message to supporters that reached the press through a recording published by a reporter for Kan, Israel's public broadcaster, and that Bennett offered no specifics on how such a coalition would be assembled.

According to the same report, Bennett repeated the message to journalists as he arrived at the Knesset, Israel's parliament, on November 10, 2026, the day of the swearing-in ceremony for the 26th Knesset. Ynet described it as his first statement since efforts to form a government with the Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) parties, and quoted him pledging to bring about a "revolution of those who serve".

What Bennett said

In the recording, as quoted by political commentator Amit Segal on Telegram, Bennett told party activists that B'Yachad was doing everything, quietly, to help Eisenkot establish the government so that the party could deliver that revolution. The Hebrew phrase, mahapechat hameshartim, refers to people who serve in the military and in reserve duty, and Bennett tied it directly to the burden on them.

Ynet reported further lines: that there was no time to lose, that reservists, known in Hebrew as miluimnikim, were crying out for a change, and that, despite what Ynet called a political tangle, "we received tools for a good government". In the recording to activists, Ynet said, Bennett also acknowledged that "struggles" lay ahead. The Times of Israel quoted him saying the aim was to achieve a changing of the guard as quickly as possible in order to fix Israel.

The draft question behind the slogan

The emphasis on reservists carries a political signal. The Times of Israel read Bennett's framing as an indication that he opposes meeting Haredi demands for continued exemptions from military service. The exemption of many ultra-Orthodox yeshiva students from conscription has long been one of the most divisive issues in Israeli politics, and it sits at the centre of any negotiation that involves the Haredi parties. Reservists, who are called up for extended periods on top of their civilian lives, have become a prominent constituency in that debate.

Eisenkot's coalition arithmetic

The Times of Israel identified Eisenkot as the leader of the bloc that B'Yachad belongs to, and described the goal as a coalition that would replace the current government. Eisenkot is a former military chief of staff turned politician. In Israel's parliamentary system, a prime minister needs a majority in the Knesset to form a government, which usually means stitching together several parties.

The Times of Israel noted that Bennett's remarks did little to explain how Eisenkot could reach that majority without the backing of anti-Zionist Haredi parties and Arab parties. Bennett's choice of the word "Zionist" to describe the intended government suggests he is ruling out reliance on those parties, though he did not say so explicitly in the quotes published.

Yair Lapid, another opposition leader, was also quoted by Ynet, saying that when he and Bennett are quiet, "things happen". The remark echoes Bennett's own emphasis on working behind the scenes.

Where the remarks were made

The reports differ slightly on the setting. Amit Segal, Ynet and the Times of Israel describe a recording made for party activists or supporters. A separate Ynet news alert on Telegram said Bennett spoke at a meeting of his Knesset faction. The Times of Israel also said he repeated the message to reporters at the Knesset entrance, so the comments may have been delivered in more than one setting.

What the reports do not say

None of the reports explains which parties Eisenkot would rely on to reach a majority, or what the quiet talks Bennett referred to involve. There is no published response from Eisenkot to Bennett's remarks, and the reports do not identify who led the earlier efforts to form a government with the Haredi parties or what became of them.