Netanyahu Urges Eisenkot to Form a Unity Government Over Iran

On Saturday evening, Israel’s caretaker prime minister released a recorded video after a Thursday security briefing with Yashar leader Gadi Eisenkot, arguing that only a national unity government can remove what he called an existential Iranian threat.

The statement was posted on Netanyahu’s official account after the Sabbath. Eisenkot, a former Israel Defense Forces chief of staff, still holds President Isaac Herzog’s mandate to form the next government after the Oct. 27 election.

Netanyahu Cites a Renewed Iran Threat

Netanyahu said the Thursday meeting had “only strengthened” his view that a national unity government is required.

He claimed that “the Iranian regime, which strives for the destruction of Israel, is once again acting to renew its nuclear program.”

He called Iran a “murderous regime, which did not hesitate to murder many thousands of its own people,” and said it “will not hesitate to use nuclear weapons against us” once it could resume enrichment and accelerate weapons development.

Israel must “do everything, everything” to prevent that, he said, “just as we did in Rising Lion and Roaring Lion.” Those names refer to the June 2025 strikes on Iran and a later operation also known as Lion’s Roar.

“We must remove this existential threat from over our heads once and for all,” he said.

An Appeal Without Preconditions

Netanyahu then addressed Eisenkot by his first name and urged him to drop what the caretaker prime minister called an attempt “to form a shaky and dangerous government.”

“Let’s enter the room without preconditions, put aside all disputes and all boycotts,” he said.

He said any agreements should cover Israel’s security and the military draft, which he argued could be resolved with representatives of the ultra-Orthodox public.

A narrow government, or one that relies on “terror supporters,” cannot meet the challenge in time, Netanyahu claimed, using that phrase for Arab parties.

He said a national unity government would also answer a public longing for “national reconciliation.”

Eisenkot Holds the Mandate

Eisenkot leads the Yashar party and remains in talks while Netanyahu stays on as caretaker. His Jewish-led bloc holds 48 of the Knesset’s 120 seats, Netanyahu’s right-wing and religious bloc holds 53, and Arab-led parties hold 19.

A government needs 61 seats. The “shaky and dangerous government” line referred to Eisenkot’s coalition effort, which Netanyahu has portrayed as a narrow cabinet or one dependent on Arab parties.

Eisenkot has opened talks with United Torah Judaism and Shas that could reach 61 seats if both joined his camp. He has previously said he will not serve under Netanyahu.

No public response from Eisenkot to Saturday’s video had been issued at the time of writing.