Twenty-four hours after President Reuven Rivlin handed Blue and White party chairman Benny Gantz the mandate to form the next government, change, let alone any leads that could resolve this political impasse, remain to be seen.
For their part, Likud party members appeared confident on Thursday, in particular in light of the fact that all of their natural partners had rejected Gantz's invitation to meet for negotiations. One Likud party member even went so far as to tell Israel Hayom that "the prime minister looks good, sharp, encouraged, and mainly sure of himself.
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"No scenario exists that would see someone defect from the right-wing political bloc. In this current situation, Gantz will most certainly be unable to form a government. We hope he moves toward a unity government and doesn't drag the country to a third round of elections," he said.
Interior Minister and Shas party chief Aryeh Deri spoke in a similar vein in an interview with Israel Radio, Thursday.
"Gantz called me. I congratulated him on receiving a great national task, and I told him that if he genuinely wants a unity government, there is one framework: the president's framework."
Deri asked, "After all, what is the point of these meetings? To try and dissolve the bloc – and this bloc will not disintegrate. Why wait around for another 28 days to be lost? I want a broad national unity government. The only way is for Gantz to understand he must not heed bad advice."
Upon Gantz's receiving the mandate to form the government, the party issued a plethora of statements to the media, according to which Gantz was holding one-on-one talks with party heads with the aim of promoting a unity government.
Nevertheless, just one meeting with party heads was officially scheduled on Thursday: a Monday meeting between Gantz and Labor-Gesher party heads Amir Peretz and Orly Levy-Abekasis.
In addition, Gantz is also expected to hold a meeting with US Special Representative for International Negotiations Jason Greenblatt at the US Embassy in Jerusalem later that day.
Next Saturday, Gantz will take part in a memorial rally marking 24 years to the assassination of Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin at Tel Aviv's Rabin Square, where he is set to be the keynote speaker.
According to a Channel 12 News report on Thursday, Blue and White has in recent days been drawing up plans for a compromise proposal for that would see Gantz's party offer Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu the opportunity to serve as Israel's leader in a rotation agreement, with the Likud leader set to serve in the role of premier first, followed by Gantz, or alternatively, have the Likud join the unity government along with the rest of the right-wing bloc.
Blue and White officials, however, dismissed the report. Party members told Israel Hayom they would not be making any information pertaining to possible offers public, in particular ahead of coalition talks.
As for Blue and White's hopes of excluding the Balad party from its coalition talks with the Joint Arab List, one faction official said, "The story is quite simple: The list will conduct the talks as a joint list, just as Blue and White [comprised of the Israel Resilience party, Yesh Atid, and Telem] will conduct the talks as Blue and White."
Joint Arab List Chairman Ayman Odeh said, "The Netanyahu era began after an obstructive bloc government, and the Netanyahu era can come to an end with an obstructive bloc government. We demand to see an alternative of peace and equality."
According to Odeh's fellow party member Yousef Jabareen, "Gantz started off his contacts with the Joint Arab List on the wrong foot. His decision to call the heads of three of the parties that comprise the list and not the fourth is a miserable attempt to divide the components of the list and harm its unity."
Meanwhile, Blue and White MK Avi Nissenkorn has been appointed chairman of the Knesset Arrangements Committee, a role which up until Thursday was held by Likud MK Miki Zohar. With Rivlin having tasked Gantz with forming the government, the law holds that a representative of the Blue and White leader's party must head the committee.
As head of the Knesset Arrangements Committee, Nissenkorn will work in coordination with Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein to determine the subjects to be discussed in the Knesset until the establishment of permanent committees, foremost among them the House Committee.
With the Knesset set to commence its day-to-day activities on Monday, Nissenkorn will play an important role in determining the dates when it will convene and the issues it is set to discuss.
