Israel's Arab-led parties have put Gadi Eisenkot forward as their candidate for prime minister, according to Sky TG24, as President Isaac Herzog works through consultations with each parliamentary faction on who should form the next government. The United Arab List and the Arab party Ra'am both named the former IDF chief of staff, RaiNews and Il Sole 24 ORE reported. The endorsement lands as Benjamin Netanyahu's own path back to office narrows.
Herzog has been meeting party delegations at his residence, where each faction states whom it proposes for the premiership. Sky TG24 reported that he finished talks with the far-right Religious Zionism party and moved on to the ultra-Orthodox Sephardi party Shas, led by Aryeh Deri.
Why it matters
The consultations are the formal opening of coalition-building, and the names put forward signal which blocs can realistically assemble a majority in the Knesset. Arab parties backing a candidate outside Netanyahu's camp is a significant shift in that arithmetic, and it comes as his ultra-Orthodox allies step back from committing to him.
United Torah Judaism told Herzog it would not name any candidate for forming a government and said it was "not bound to any bloc," according to the reporting. The decision, covered by Domani, leaves the prime minister without a formal nomination from a partner whose support he has long counted on.
Eisenkot's first move: a state inquiry into October 7
Before entering coalition negotiations, Eisenkot is preparing to take control of parliamentary committees, according to Ynet, as cited in the reporting. His first step as leader of the Yashar party would be to establish a state commission of inquiry into the October 7 massacre — approved by the Knesset rather than by the government.
In parallel, leaders of the Change Bloc parties have agreed to set up between six and eight special committees to handle legislation. Those panels would work on repealing the judicial overhaul laws and on passing urgent bills that can clear the Knesset with the majority Netanyahu's opponents hold there, according to the reporting.
Iran warns Europe over use of bases
Separately, a member of the Iranian parliament's national security committee said Tehran would strike Europe if US bases there were used against Iran. "If America uses its bases in Europe, including those in Italy and Germany, Iranian missiles will be launched toward Europe," Ahmad Bakhshayesh Ardestani told Euronews, as reported by Sky TG24. The remark followed orders from Mojtaba Khamenei for a response to any enemy threat "without geographic restrictions," according to the same reporting.
Iran's foreign ministry spokesman, Ismail Baghaei, rejected EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas's claim that Tehran is interfering in the Saudi-Yemen conflict, state broadcaster IRIB reported. Baghaei said the EU shares responsibility for serious human rights violations in Yemen through sanctions and an economic blockade, and that European officials cannot avoid that responsibility with general comments. He categorically denied accusations that Iranian military experts are present in Yemen, saying Yemenis need no outside intervention, and called for an end to military attacks, respect for Yemeni self-determination, an end to the naval and air blockade, and dialogue based on a roadmap agreed between Yemenis and Saudi Arabia.
Russia, Iran deepen defence and transport ties
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Andrei Nikitin said Moscow and Tehran have signed a package of documents for the Rasht-Astara railway project, according to Tass. Russia's Caspian Services and Iran's Cdtic signed a protocol granting access to land along the full route for preliminary engineering surveys, plus a supplementary agreement to their contract, he said.
General Mohsen Rezaei, secretary of Iran's Supreme National Security Council, delivered a message from Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei to Russian President Vladimir Putin during a meeting at the Kremlin, Iranian state television reported.
The Guardian, citing leaked defence-sector documents obtained by Ukrainian private intelligence firm Dallas Analytics, reported that Russia has arranged to supply Iran with 90 launchers for advanced guided missiles. The documents describe plans to provide launchers for the Lmur, a guided missile fired from attack helicopters that Russian forces have used widely against Ukrainian targets since the 2022 invasion, and include a production plan drawn up in May.
In the United States, former White House strategist Steve Bannon urged Donald Trump to set up an inquiry into the US war with Iran and publish its findings, arguing the president needs it to win back Americans' trust. Bannon said Israeli institutions should cooperate by making their documents available, according to the reporting.
Casualties in Gaza
Gaza media reported on X that a 54-year-old woman, Noura Suleiman Mohammed Sheikh al-Eid, was killed by IDF gunfire in the Bir 19 area, south of Gaza. A man was reported wounded elsewhere in the Strip, and a strike was reported in al Shati, west of Gaza City, according to the same accounts.
What to watch: whether Herzog's tally of nominations produces a viable majority for Eisenkot or sends the mandate elsewhere, and whether United Torah Judaism's refusal to commit holds when coalition talks begin.
