Amit Segal on Netanyahu-Eisenkot Unity Talks

Negotiating teams for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party and Gadi Eisenkot, chairman of the Yashar! party, met on Sunday, November 15, joined by a representative of Naftali Bennett, chairman of the Beyachad party. Channel 12 political analyst Amit Segal said Bennett's presence at the talks does not necessarily signal a breakthrough or serious intent to form a unity government.

Segal laid out his view in what he called a "short guide" to the moves behind the scenes. Asked whether Eisenkot had brought in Bennett's representative because the contacts were serious, he answered: "Not really. Just today he traveled all the way to Sde Boker to explain that the unity Netanyahu is offering is not unity. Adding Bennett's representative helps Eisenkot fend off criticism from the left over the meeting itself."

Segal also pointed to the makeup of the negotiating room, which includes Yoav Horowitz and Shalom Shlomo. He argued that their shared past in the Prime Minister's Office shapes the message being sent to Netanyahu.

"Yoav Horowitz was Netanyahu's chief of staff and has since become a harsh critic. Shalom Shlomo was an adviser to Netanyahu and has since moved over to his rivals. With both of them there, the message is 'we know all your shtick,'" he wrote.

Asked whether these moves mean there is no chance of a broad unity government, Segal said the door is not entirely closed, but conditions for such a government are still far from ripe. "No, but certainly not at this stage and not in open talks," he wrote.