Israel’s Yashar party leader Gadi Eisenkot has ruled out joining a governing coalition led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, even at the personal request of US President Donald Trump, KAN reported.
The broadcaster, citing sources, said Eisenkot made the remarks during a closed-door gathering.
"I will not sit in a government led by Netanyahu," he was quoted as saying.
"If Trump invites me, I will respect the president and attend, but I will stress that this concerns internal Israeli affairs, and I will prevent any interference."
The stance follows Netanyahu's insistence on heading any broad government whilst firmly rejecting any coalition dependent on the two main Arab factions, Ra’am and the Joint List.
Consultations deadlock
Israeli opposition factions have coalesced around recommending that President Isaac Herzog task Eisenkot with forming the next administration, as consultations commence on Wednesday and Thursday.
Yair Golan's Democrats confirmed their endorsement on Monday, matching earlier commitments by Naftali Bennett’s Together party and Avigdor Lieberman's Yisrael Beytenu.
With anticipated endorsements from the Joint List and Ra'am, Eisenkot could secure recommendations from 67 lawmakers in the 120-member Knesset, compared with 53 for Netanyahu's alliance.
Last Tuesday's elections yielded a fractured parliament.
Netanyahu's bloc took 53 seats—including 27 for Likud, seven each for United Torah Judaism and Otzma Yehudit, and six each for Shas and Religious Zionism.
