Netanyahu could bring Eisenkot into government at Ben Gvir’s expense

Could Gadi Eisenkot join Benjamin Netanyahu’s next government at the expense of Itamar Ben Gvir? Channel 12 political analyst Amit Segal addressed the possibility raised by the Otzma Yehudit chairman at the Arutz Sheva-Israel National News conference, outlining two scenarios that could significantly change the makeup of the next coalition. According to Segal, the first scenario would see neither political bloc win a clear victory, prompting Netanyahu and Eisenkot to reach an agreement on a unity government, possibly with a rotation in the premiership. “This scenario could happen in one of two ways," Segal said. “One is if there is no clear outcome and, somehow, a rotation is agreed upon. In that case, there is no doubt that either the haredi parties, Ben Gvir, or both would have to be sacrificed to make the deal happen." Segal said this was a realistic possibility, but that the second scenario was even more interesting: Netanyahu wins a 61-seat majority but nevertheless chooses to bring additional parties into his government. “What happens if Netanyahu wins 61 seats and then Eisenkot, Bennett or Liberman says, ‘Listen, you won, so let’s join you and dilute the power of your current partners’?" Segal asked. In such a situation, Ben Gvir and the haredi parties would not necessarily be excluded from the government, but their bargaining power would diminish. “I don’t think Otzma Yehudit or the haredi parties would be thrown out of the government, but their power would decrease," Segal explained. “That is natural when you are no longer a veto player." However, Segal expressed skepticism about claims that Netanyahu is already working to weaken Ben Gvir to pave the way for Eisenkot to join the next coalition. “Is there a Netanyahu conspiracy to include Eisenkot in the next government from the outset, with Netanyahu working to reduce Ben Gvir’s power? I doubt it," he said. Segal argued that Netanyahu and his other political partners do not necessarily share an interest in weakening all the parties currently in the coalition. “I’m not sure all those partners are particularly comfortable with the haredi parties, for example," he said, adding that Netanyahu is not working to reduce the power of Shas. “Quite the opposite, in a sense."