Eisenkot works three coalition channels as talks with Likud are set to open

Gadi Eisenkot, chairman of the Yashar party, is running coalition negotiations along three separate tracks at the same time, according to an analysis published by Ynet. The Israeli news site said he is talking with the haredi (ultra-Orthodox) parties and with the Arab parties, and that a further channel, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, was due to open the day after its report appeared.

Ynet assessed that two of the three possible governments, one relying on the Arab parties and one built with Netanyahu, look the least likely to come together. It reported that the political camp it calls the change bloc is concentrating its efforts on the haredi parties, while pressing ahead with moves in the Knesset, Israel's parliament, ahead of what the site expects to be a turbulent political week. An analysis in The Jerusalem Post framed the same moment from Netanyahu's side: it said the prime minister is buying time while the haredi parties consider joining an Eisenkot coalition, but that he does not have an alternative of his own.

Who the players are

Yashar is the party led by Eisenkot. A photograph carried by The Jerusalem Post shows him standing behind Netanyahu as party leaders gathered for a group picture in the Knesset in Jerusalem on November 10, 2026. Netanyahu leads Likud, the party whose meeting with Eisenkot is the subject of both analyses.

The haredi parties represent ultra-Orthodox Jewish communities. In Israeli coalition politics they have often been decisive partners, because their seats can determine whether a would-be prime minister reaches a majority in the Knesset. The Arab parties represent Arab citizens of Israel. Ynet's reporting places them as one of the three negotiating options, though one it rates as unlikely to produce a government.

The phrase change bloc is used in Israeli political reporting for the grouping of parties opposed to a Netanyahu-led government. Ynet's account suggests that bloc now sees a deal with the haredi parties as its most realistic route to power.

How Israeli coalitions are formed

Israel elects its parliament by nationwide proportional representation, and no single party has ever won a majority on its own. A government is formed only when a leader can assemble a coalition of parties that together command a majority in the Knesset. That process typically involves negotiating with several possible partners in parallel, as Eisenkot is now doing, and talks with one camp can be used to apply pressure on another.

Read together, the two analyses describe overlapping pressures. On Ynet's account, Eisenkot is keeping several options open while focusing on the haredi parties. On The Jerusalem Post's account, Netanyahu is trying to slow the process while those same parties weigh their choice, and has no other coalition ready to offer.

Where the reports differ in emphasis

The two outlets do not contradict each other on the facts they report, but they look at the situation from different ends. Ynet sets out Eisenkot's three channels and judges the Arab and Likud options the weakest. The Jerusalem Post focuses on Netanyahu's position, describing it as one of buying time without a fallback. Neither report says the haredi parties have reached a decision.

What the reports do not say

• Neither analysis reports what Eisenkot and Likud intend to discuss, or what either side would demand in a partnership.
• No statement from the haredi parties, the Arab parties or Likud on the negotiations appears in the material.
• The reports do not specify which Knesset moves the change bloc is advancing, or what the coming week's political agenda includes.
• Neither outlet gives a timeline for when a coalition might be agreed or a government presented.