Thousands rally in Israel urging Eisenkot-Arab deal to remove Netanyahu

In a counterprotest, Netanyahu supporters demand that Israel should not have a government with ‘terrorists’.

Al JazeeraAl Jazeera Staff2026-11-01 02:05查看原文 ↗

In a counterprotest, Netanyahu supporters demand that Israel should not have a government with ‘terrorists’.

Protesters take part in a demonstration on Habima Square in Tel Aviv on October 31, 2026, calling for the formation of a Jewish-Arab coalition government following Israel's general elections. [AFP]

Thousands of people have rallied in Tel Aviv to urge the Israeli opposition to make a deal with Arab parties to remove Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Protesters at Saturday’s rally told the AFP news agency this may be the “last chance for real change” and that Netanyahu, Israel’s longest-serving prime minister, is a “great manipulator”.

Main opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot has previously ruled out forming a coalition with Israel’s Arab parties, but a deadlock in Tuesday’s elections means siding with the parties could help him form a government.

“People really want this vote for change to work out, and they believe that… Gadi Eisenkot and other leaders of the Jewish-Israeli parties need to listen to their voice,” Al Jazeera correspondent Nour Odeh said from Ramallah on Saturday.

Counter-protesters also showed up to Saturday’s demonstrations, with Netanyahu supporters seen shouting their own demands that “Israel should not have a government with so-called terrorists”, Odeh said.

Netanyahu’s bloc won 53 seats in Tuesday’s elections, while Eisenkot’s won 48, meaning neither side can form a government in Israel’s 120-seat parliament alone.

Israel’s three Arab-led parties won 19 seats, having made significant gains in Tuesday’s election.

Nearly 840,000 people voted for Ra’am and the Joint List, a coalition of three Arab-led parties, a 64 percent increase from the last elections in 2022, according to the Central Election Committee.

The Arab electoral success means a coalition with Eisenkot would provide a comfortable majority of 67. However, for many in Israel, the idea of siding with Arabs is politically unpalatable.

Netanyahu has accused Palestinian-Israeli parties of “stealing” the polls and accepting funding from Qatar to do it. Qatar has rejected the allegations , calling it a disinformation campaign.

Odeh said that Israeli right-wing circles have described “the historic turnout of Palestinian Israelis as electoral terrorism, equating it to the October 7th attack”, when Hamas-led fighters stormed southern Israel, killing more than 1,200 people and taking hundreds captive.

“Palestinian-Israeli votes and voices” are under attack because they have a “prominent position” in deciding whether Eisenkot can form a government, she added.

A protester dressed as US President Donald Trump and holding a puppet depicting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu takes part in a demonstration in Tel Aviv on October 31, 2026, calling for the formation of a Jewish-Arab coalition government following Israel’s general elections [AFP]

在反抗议活动中，内塔尼亚胡的支持者要求以色列不应该有一个由“恐怖分子”组成的政府。

2026年10月31日，抗议者在特拉维夫哈比玛广场举行示威活动，呼吁在以色列大选后组建犹太人和阿拉伯人联合政府。[法新社]

数千人在特拉维夫集会，敦促以色列反对派与阿拉伯政党达成协议，罢免总理本雅明·内塔尼亚胡。

周六集会上的抗议者告诉法新社，这可能是“真正变革的最后机会”，而以色列任期最长的总理内塔尼亚胡是一位“伟大的操纵者”。

主要反对党领袖加迪·艾森科特此前已排除与以色列阿拉伯政党组建联合政府的可能性，但周二的选举陷入僵局意味着与这些政党结盟可能有助于他组建政府。

“人们真心希望这次变革投票能够成功，他们相信……加迪·艾森科特和其他犹太裔以色列政党的领导人需要倾听他们的声音，”半岛电视台记者努尔·奥德周六在拉马拉说道。

奥德说，周六的示威活动中也有反示威者出现，内塔尼亚胡的支持者高喊着自己的诉求，即“以色列不应该有一个由所谓恐怖分子组成的政府”。

内塔尼亚胡的阵营在周二的选举中赢得了 53 个席位，而艾森科特的阵营赢得了 48 个席位，这意味着在以色列 120 个席位的议会中，任何一方都无法单独组建政府。

以色列三个阿拉伯政党在周二的选举中取得了重大进展，赢得了 19 个席位。

据中央选举委员会称，近 84 万人投票支持拉姆和由三个阿拉伯政党组成的联合名单，比 2022 年的上次选举增加了 64%。

阿拉伯人在选举中的成功意味着与艾森科特组建的联盟将获得67席的绝对多数。然而，对许多以色列人来说，与阿拉伯人结盟的想法在政治上是难以接受的。

内塔尼亚胡指责巴以政党“窃取”选举结果，并接受卡塔尔的资金支持。卡塔尔否认了这些指控，称其为虚假信息宣传。