Gadi Eisenkot is emerging as one of the strongest challengers to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and a potential candidate to become the country’s next prime minister.
Gadi Eisenkot is emerging as one of the strongest challengers to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and a potential candidate to become the country’s next prime minister. He is a central figure in an opposition alliance formed to challenge Netanyahu’s right-wing nationalist bloc in Israel’s October 2026 general elections. If Eisenkot succeeds in forming a government, he could become the first prime minister in Israeli history from the Moroccan-origin Mizrahi Jewish community, potentially marking a historic shift in the country’s politics. Israeli political power has traditionally been dominated by Jews of European origin, while tensions and divisions involving Jews of African origin have also shaped the country’s political landscape.
Eisenkot has a predominantly military background. Born in 1960 in the Israeli city of Tiberias, he spent 41 years in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). He served as Israel’s 21st chief of staff from 2015 to 2019, giving him extensive experience in the country’s security policy and military strategy. In politics, Eisenkot is regarded as a hawk who supports a hard-line approach to national security. Rather than relying on emotional slogans or political rhetoric, he is known for emphasizing calculated military decisions, covert operations and assessments based on realities on the ground.
On the Palestinian issue, Eisenkot opposes the establishment of an independent Palestinian state. He maintains that Israel should retain ultimate security control over the territory between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea. He is also a staunch opponent of Hamas and has pledged to completely dismantle the group’s military wing within 18 months of taking office. However, compared with Netanyahu, Eisenkot is considered more pragmatic in certain areas. He supports allowing Palestinian workers from the West Bank to work in Israel, arguing that economic stability could help reduce security risks.
Eisenkot’s approach to the ongoing tensions with Iran and the possibility of a wider war appears to differ significantly from that of the current government. Unlike Netanyahu, Eisenkot believes that regime change in Iran is an unrealistic objective and should not be Israel’s primary goal. Consequently, his coming to power could reduce the likelihood of an intensified, sustained or direct regional war with Iran. Rather than relying solely on overwhelming military force, Eisenkot would reportedly favor a combination of US cooperation, covert Mossad operations and international diplomacy to constrain Iran’s nuclear programme and missile capabilities.
