{"id":1315,"date":"2026-06-30T18:10:45","date_gmt":"2026-06-30T18:10:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/topmovingpross.com\/?p=1315"},"modified":"2026-06-30T18:10:45","modified_gmt":"2026-06-30T18:10:45","slug":"this-grieving-father-and-ex-general-could-test-the-grip-of-israels-longest-serving-prime-minister","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/topmovingpross.com\/?p=1315","title":{"rendered":"This grieving father and ex-general could test the grip of Israel\u2019s longest serving prime minister"},"content":{"rendered":"
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JERUSALEM (AP) \u2014 A leading Israeli general who quit Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu<\/span> \u2019s war Cabinet after accusing him of lacking a strategy in Gaza has emerged as one of the premier\u2019s most serious challengers in elections scheduled for the fall. <\/p>\n

Read more Aid workers warn of infectious diseases, overwhelmed hospitals after Venezuela quakes<\/a><\/p>\n

His name is Gadi Eisenkot. On Tuesday in Israel<\/span>, his centrist political party \u201cYashar!\u201d or \u201cStraight!\u201d was set to formally launch its election season campaign. <\/p>\n

His rise from the highest ranks of the military could sharpen scrutiny of Netanyahu and his stewardship of Israel through multiple wars. Like nearly all of the prime minister\u2019s rivals, Eisenkot has broadly supported Israeli military operations in places such as Gaza, Lebanon and Iran. <\/p>\n

But he has also accused Netanyahu of strategic failure in the wake of the Hamas-led attacks on Oct. 7, 2023,<\/span> and said his vision of a more isolated Israel is a threat to the future of the state. <\/p>\n

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In recent days Netanyahu, who leads Israel\u2019s right-wing Likud Party, has fired back, saying if he had listened to Eisenkot, who was opposed to certain operations in Gaza, then \u201call of Hamas\u201d would still be in control in the territory.<\/p>\n

As a political newcomer, however, Eisenkot \u201clooks like a front-runner because he\u2019s everything Netanyahu is not,\u201d said Gideon Rahat, senior fellow at the Israel Democracy Institute think tank in Jerusalem. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s not polarizing, he\u2019s not a populist like Netanyahu, and he will try to unify the country,\u201d Rahat said.<\/p>\n

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An anti-Netanyahu biography<\/h2>\n

A 66-year-old son of Jewish Moroccan immigrants, Eisenkot stands in stark contrast to Netanyahu, a U.S.-educated elite who is on trial for corruption. He comes from a working-class family. His English is unpolished. He spent four decades in Israel\u2019s military. <\/p>\n

He has also never campaigned on having ties to U.S. President Donald Trump. And his 25-year-old son, Gal Meir Eisenkot, was killed in combat in Gaza, while Netanyahu\u2019s son, a podcaster, lived part-time in Florida. <\/p>\n

Losing a son \u2014 as well as two nephews \u2014 to the war has raised Eisenkot\u2019s profile among Israelis and given him credibility as someone who, having paid the ultimate price, won\u2019t needlessly sacrifice soldiers.<\/p>\n

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\u201cPeople trust him to be a real person and a patriot. They expect him to take care of the country and not himself,\u201d said Rahat, who is a professor at Hebrew University. <\/p>\n

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