Eisenkot's party calls for commission on authorities' actions before Hamas attack — Der Spiegel
In Israel, the Yashar party of former Chief of the General Staff Gadi Eisenkot, together with its allies, submitted a proposal to the newly elected Knesset to establish a state commission. It is to investigate possible miscalculations by the Israeli authorities ahead of the large-scale attack by the Palestinian group Hamas on October 7, 2023, Der Spiegel reports.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had previously refused to support the creation of such a commission and denied making any mistakes himself. Instead, he proposed forming an investigative body whose members would be appointed by politicians from different parties. In September, Netanyahu's office rejected reports that the prime minister of the United Arab Emirates had allegedly warned him about the Hamas attack.
Repeal of judicial reform
Yashar also submitted a number of bills to parliament aimed at repealing the judicial reform promoted by Netanyahu's government. The reform envisages limiting the powers of the judicial system and the Supreme Court and strengthening the role of parliament and the prime minister. It triggered mass protests and deeply divided Israeli society.
On Sunday, President Isaac Herzog tasked Eisenkot with forming a government after neither his opposition bloc nor Netanyahu's right-wing religious camp won a parliamentary majority. Eisenkot has 28 days to secure the support of at least 61 of the 120 lawmakers. If necessary, this period may be extended by another 14 days.
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Disputes during the swearing-in
Before lawmakers took their oath, Herzog called on political forces to compromise. However, the ceremony was accompanied by disputes: during the swearing-in of Israeli-Arab lawmaker Yousef Jabareen, incumbent Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir shouted: “To whom is he swearing allegiance — Hamas?” Later, several lawmakers from the Joint List left the chamber during the performance of the national anthem, apparently to avoid standing.
Netanyahu accused Israeli-Arab parties of not recognizing Israel as a Jewish state. Eisenkot called these remarks nonsensical, divisive, hateful and shameful. After the session, Netanyahu again called for the creation of a national unity government under his leadership, citing Iran among other things.
Former Prime Minister Naftali Bennett reminded the chamber of the need for a state commission on October 7 and raised the question of who knew the details of the so-called Qatari affair and when. After that, he came under attack from Sara Netanyahu and Ben-Gvir.
