-Former military chief has a few pathways to power
-Eisenkot has 28 days to try to form government with potential for 14-day extension
-He is son of Moroccan immigrants
Nov 7 (Reuters) - Israel's president on Saturday chose Gadi Eisenkot, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's strongest rival, to try to form a new government following a deadlocked election that left neither man with a clear path to power.
Netanyahu, Israel's longest-serving leader, is fighting to stay in office after his religious-nationalist coalition lost its majority in an October 27 election but still emerged as the largest bloc in parliament.
Eisenkot, a former military chief, has declined to join forces with Arab parties, with whose support he would have a majority of seats in parliament. But Arab leaders, incensed by what they view as the racist policies of Netanyahu and his far-right allies, still nominated Eisenkot to try to form a government first — giving him the most endorsements.
"President Herzog has invited Gadi Eisenkot to the President’s Residence, where he will be tasked with forming the government tomorrow," said the spokesperson of President Isaac Herzog, whose largely ceremonial role involves nominating a candidate to form a coalition after elections.
Another group are the sizeable group of Arab Muslims that identify as Israeli rather than Palestinian.
They might do so publicly, in order to avoid persecution, but that should be taken with appropriate skepticism. My wife's Palestinian, and in her lifetime, she has known only a very small number of Palestinians with Israeli passports who privately identify as anything but Palestinian. That divide-and-rule tactic by the Israelis has not worked.
And for the Druze, their belief system requires them to comply with whoever happens to be in charge. That's the result of their having a long history of persecution in places they live. So they keep their heads down : better second-class citizens than dead.
And how many of the Arabic Jews vote for the "Arab" parties? Any?