Bennett's party backs Eisenkot to form Israel's next government

Former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett's party said on Sunday it would back Yashar leader Gadi Eisenkot to form the next government, Turkey's state-run news agency Anadolu Agency reported.

The decision was taken on Bennett's instructions, his Together party said in a statement.

Bennett had promised throughout the election campaign to respect the voters' choice, and the party said backing Eisenkot was consistent with that pledge.

Bennett had informed Eisenkot of the decision, the statement added.

Israel's Channel 12 reported that Yair Golan's Democrats party also planned to recommend Eisenkot during the presidential consultations, although Golan had not made an official announcement.

The moves came as opposition parties tried to coordinate their recommendations after the parliamentary elections, while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's camp continued efforts to secure a governing majority.

The Central Elections Committee published the final results on Friday, giving Netanyahu's Likud 27 seats, Eisenkot's Yashar 21, Bennett's Together 12 and Golan's Democrats eight.

The Joint List won 11 seats, while the United Arab List, known as Ra'am, secured eight.

Netanyahu's bloc won 53 seats overall, compared with 48 for opposition parties and 19 for Arab parties, and neither main bloc reached the 61 seats needed for a majority in the 120-seat parliament.

Committee Chairman Justice Noam Sohlberg is scheduled to submit the official results to Herzog on Nov. 4, the day the president begins consultations with elected parties to hear whom they recommend.

The candidate Herzog designates receives an initial 28 days to form a government, with the possibility of a further 14-day extension.