JERUSALEM
Leaders of Israel’s Jewish opposition parties will meet Tuesday for the first time since last week’s parliamentary elections to coordinate their next moves ahead of presidential consultations on forming a government, Israeli media reported Monday.
The leaders of the change bloc will meet Tuesday at 11.30 am local time (0930GMT) to discuss coordinating the bloc’s moves, daily Yedioth Ahronoth reported.
The meeting will bring together Yashar leader Gadi Eisenkot, Together leader Naftali Bennett, Yisrael Beytenu leader Avigdor Lieberman, Democrats leader Yair Golan and opposition leader Yair Lapid, who heads Yesh Atid, according to the newspaper.
It will take place at the Dan Acadia hotel in Herzliya, central Israel.
President Isaac Herzog is scheduled to begin two days of consultations with parliamentary factions Wednesday before selecting a lawmaker to task with forming the next government.
Under Israel’s Basic Law, the Government, the designated lawmaker has 28 days to assemble a government, with the president authorized to grant an extension of up to 14 days.
Last week’s elections left Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s bloc with 53 seats in the 120-member Knesset, compared with 48 for the Jewish opposition parties and 19 for the Arab parties.
Neither camp secured the 61 seats needed for a parliamentary majority.
Eisenkot has secured the backing of the 48 opposition lawmakers after the Democrats, Together and Yisrael Beytenu decided to recommend him during Herzog’s consultations.
The two Arab lists are also expected to recommend Eisenkot, potentially bringing his total to 67 recommendations.
Such backing would strengthen his prospects of receiving the mandate, although the president is not required to choose the candidate with the most recommendations or the leader of the largest party.
Receiving the mandate would not automatically make Eisenkot prime minister or guarantee that he could form a government.
Lieberman has rejected joining a government that includes Arab parties or relies on their support, leaving a major obstacle to translating the opposition’s combined parliamentary strength into a governing coalition.
