Former IDF chief and current MK Gadi Eisenkot said Friday he hopes Yuli Edelstein's departure from the Likud party serves as a model for other Likud members who refuse to advance draft evasion. Eisenkot noted that he worked alongside Edelstein on the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee to advance genuine conscription legislation and the National Security Strategy Law.
MK Gadi Eisenkot, a former IDF chief of staff and a leading figure in the center-left political camp, responded Friday evening to fellow MK Yuli Edelstein's resignation from the Likud party earlier in the day. In a statement published by ynet, Eisenkot said: "I hope Edelstein will be an example for others in Likud who are unwilling to promote draft evasion." He recalled the two had worked together on the Knesset's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee on legislation to advance genuine conscription — a highly contentious issue in Israeli politics — as well as the National Security Strategy Law.
Edelstein, a former Knesset speaker and longtime Likud member, announced his departure from the party on Friday, citing his opposition to what he described as the party's shift away from national security principles. The Zioneer reported earlier Friday that opposition leader Naftali Bennett said the first decision of a government he would lead would be to bring Edelstein back to the Likud. Edelstein's departure has triggered discussion among right-of-center political figures and analysts about potential realignments, with Eisenkot now publicly backing the move as a principled stance against draft evasion — a policy area that has divided coalition and opposition parties for years.
The broader political context includes ongoing coalition negotiations and a series of public positioning moves by former senior security figures. Eisenkot has been positioning himself as a centrist alternative, while analysts have speculated that a new party led by Edelstein, Gilad Erdan, and Ayelet Shaked could emerge as a kingmaker. Still, Eisenkot's remarks remain a single public statement from one lawmaker; no further responses from other Likud members beyond Bennett's earlier statement have been reported in this update.
3 developments
- DevelopingEdelstein tells N12 he can no longer justify Likud policies, will form new unity government framework
- DevelopingYuli Edelstein expected to leave Likud, reportedly in talks with Erdan, Shaked
- DevelopingLikud tells ministers: We will not sit under center-left figures like Eisenkot
- StrongTelegram analysis warns Likud against ethnic-bloc campaigning, says it could boost Eisenkot
Source and signal
- Internal intake