Israel’s new parliament was sworn in on Nov. 10, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu set to lose his majority even as rival Gadi Eisenkot still works to form a new government.
President Isaac Herzog delivered speech for the swearing-in of the 120-seat parliament, in which neither Netanyahu’s right-wing bloc nor Eisenkot’s opposition will hold a majority.
The opposition hopes to use its newfound legislative power to move quickly on key priorities, including a commission to investigate security failures under Netanyahu that allowed the 2023 attack by Hamas, the deadliest day in Israel’s history.
Herzog on Nov. 8 gave Eisenkot the initial mandate to form a government, starting the clock for him to cobble together a coalition within 28 days, with a possible 14-day extension.
Ahead of the parliament opening, Eisenkot’s party announced progress in naming people to seek key positions.
The opposition will put forward Matan Kahana, like Eisenkot a former senior military figure, as speaker of the parliament, Eisenkot’s Yashar party said.
Avigdor Lieberman, a right-wing opposition leader who has played a key role in deciding who can enter the government, will be nominated as chair of the foreign affairs and defense committee.
The opposition’s choice for speaker would need to secure a larger number of votes than anyone backed by Netanyahu’s bloc, which has been trying to push back a vote on the speaker.
The newly formed government would need 61 votes to be approved to take office.
Eisenkot could secure the threshold with support from Arab-Israeli lawmakers, who secured a record number of seats on the back of anger in the minority community over Netanyahu’s hard-right government.
