The President of Israel, Yitzhak Herzog, officially gave Gadi Eisenkot, leader of the Ishr Party and former Chief of Staff of the IDF, the mandate to form a new government, passing on Benjamin Netanyahu.
After the October 27 elections left neither party with a majority, 67 Knesset members recommended Eisenkot for prime minister, including the Arab-led parties, while only 46 supported Netanyahu.
Eisenkot lost power with the Arab-led parties, leaving him well short of 61 seats. Now he is wooing the ultra-Orthodox parties and even the Likud, calling for a "national emergency government." ".
Netanyahu, meanwhile, is pushing for his own "government of national unity", provided it includes all of his former coalition allies, including the religious Zionist Smotrich.
Eisencott has 28 days to form a coalition, with a possible 14-day extension. If he fails, Netanyahu can get his turn. Until a new government wins a vote of confidence, Netanyahu will remain prime minister.
Do not expect a change in policy towards Gaza, Lebanon or Iran. Eisenkot is the general who formulated the deterrence doctrine in 2008, the strategy of the deliberate destruction of civilian infrastructure in areas deemed hostile.