Gadi Eisenkot’s political bloc has proposed a state commission of inquiry into the October 7, 2023, Hamas-led attacks, as Israel’s newly sworn-in Knesset began work on Tuesday, November 10. The bloc also wants to limit prime ministers’ terms and reverse parts of the outgoing government’s judicial reforms.
The measures were presented as initiatives, not enacted policies. The Associated Press reported that Eisenkot’s camp had set out the proposals as it seeks to replace Benjamin Netanyahu’s government.
The attacks killed about 1,200 people in Israel and led to 251 people being taken hostage into Gaza, according to the source report. Eisenkot’s bloc wants an official investigation into the events and the failures surrounding them.
The new parliament has 120 members. Israel held its election on October 27, and members were sworn in on November 10, according to the Knesset. Eisenkot’s bloc won 48 seats, while Netanyahu’s bloc secured 53, leaving neither with enough support to govern alone.
President Isaac Herzog gave Eisenkot six weeks to try to form a government. Building a coalition could prove difficult: the Arab parties won 19 seats, but Avigdor Lieberman’s Yisrael Beitenu party, which is part of Eisenkot’s bloc, opposes joining a government with them. Yisrael Beitenu holds seven seats.
Netanyahu called for a national unity government, saying Israel would face pressure over Iran. Eisenkot has rejected that proposal. He said before the swearing-in that he would work for all Israelis and seek to form a national emergency government quickly.
Reid Bentley 
Nicole French