Tibi urges Eisenkot to form minority cabinet

Palestinian lawmaker Ahmad Tibi is calling on Israeli opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot to form a minority government that excludes Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Tibi, who leads the Ta’al party, told Middle East Eye on Friday that Eisenkot needs the political courage of former prime minister Yitzhak Rabin. In 1993, Rabin led a 56-seat minority government that relied on support from Palestinian-led parties to advance the Oslo Accords.

The call for a new coalition comes after Tuesday’s election results left both major blocs short of the 61 seats required for a majority. Netanyahu’s bloc won 53 seats, down from 64 in 2022. The opposition bloc, which includes Palestinian parties, holds 67 seats.

Tibi’s Ta’al party is part of the Joint List, an alliance with Hadash and Balad. Together, these three parties won 11 seats. Another Palestinian party, Ra’am, secured eight seats. This gives the two Palestinian slates a combined 19 seats, a record high for Palestinian representation in the Knesset.

Tibi stated that the Joint List is ready to support Eisenkot’s bid to form a minority cabinet. He described this arrangement as the preferred outcome over a national unity government. A unity deal would likely pair Likud with opposition parties while excluding far-right ministers such as Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben Gvir.

Tibi argued that a unity government would allow Netanyahu’s policies to continue while letting a new leader present them to Western audiences. “We prefer a new government by Eisenkot, as a minority government, and we are ready to help,” Tibi said.

He characterized the high turnout among Palestinian citizens of Israel as a decisive factor in preventing Netanyahu from securing another majority. The group numbers roughly two million people, or about 20 percent of Israel’s population. Tibi praised voters who participated despite age, illness, or mobility issues.

Tibi rejected claims that Qatar financed the high turnout. He called the allegations politically motivated and said they would have no effect on the election results. “Two, three, four, five days, everything will be relieved. It will be a minor issue; it will have zero effect on the results and on the process,” he said.

He accused Netanyahu of using the financing allegations to intimidate Palestinian voters and discourage cooperation with the opposition. Tibi also pointed to foreign financing claims surrounding the prime minister’s own office. “The only corrupted party here is the prime minister and the prime minister's office,” he said.

Tibi urged opposition parties to replace Knesset Speaker Amir Ohana, a Likud lawmaker. He accused Ohana of making the Knesset a racist institution and worsening relations with Palestinian representatives. “The best practical step should be removing Amir Ohana, the speaker of the parliament, and voting for the candidate of the opposition. It should be done, no hesitation,” Tibi said.