Bennett and Eisenkot Meet in Ra’anana to Discuss Forming a Government

Naftali Bennett and Gadi Eisenkot met at Bennett’s home in Ra’anana on Thursday evening, October 29, to discuss forming Israel’s next government. A statement issued on their behalf said their talks addressed ways to put a government together as quickly as possible. Bennett, a former prime minister, leads Together, while Eisenkot leads Yashar. Earlier Thursday, Eisenkot sent a telephone message to the public thanking supporters for the trust they had placed in him. He said he would work hard to justify that trust and would seek to fulfill voters’ wishes by working to form a new government. President Isaac Herzog separately outlined the next stage of the government-formation process on Thursday morning. Speaking at the President’s Residence at an event honoring the Jewish Federations of North America’s Israel Small Business Loan Fund, he said he would meet representatives of all Knesset factions after receiving the official results. He referred to consultations the following week. Herzog also called for a full investigation of allegations of election interference and for those responsible to be held accountable under the law. “The integrity of our elections is a supreme democratic value,” he said. He cautioned against casting suspicion on an entire community for exercising its right to vote.