{"id":"1794098846314-news-segment","slug":"israel-president-picks-eisenkot-over-netanyahu","title":"Israel President Picks Eisenkot Over Netanyahu","summary":"Israeli President Isaac Herzog picked Gadi Eisenkot to form the next government after the October 27 election produced no 61-seat majority. Eisenkot's Yashar-led alliance won 48 seats; Netanyahu's right-wing and religious bloc won 53; Arab-led parties won a record 19. In consultations, 67 lawmakers recommended Eisenkot and 46 recommended Netanyahu. Herzog planned to hand over the formal mandate on Sunday, giving Eisenkot 28 days, with a possible 14-day extension, to build a coalition of at least 61 Knesset seats.\n\nOpposition parties, including Arab-led parties, united around Eisenkot specifically to end Netanyahu's tenure. Although Eisenkot has ruled out a formal coalition with Arab-led parties, their endorsements gave him a clear majority of recommendations. Netanyahu has responded by urging a “national unity government” and warning against a government dependent on what he called “terrorist supporters.” Eisenkot's camp has demanded that Likud break with far-right allies before any unity deal.\n\nIsraeli President Isaac Herzog has asked opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot, not Benjamin Netanyahu, to form the next government. 67 Knesset members recommended Eisenkot versus 46 for Netanyahu; Eisenkot's bloc won 48 seats and Netanyahu's bloc 53, with Arab-led parties winning a record 19. The formal mandate was to be handed over on Sunday.\n\nThe Wall Street Journal reported that the U.S. president said he offered a position to Dana White, and White replied that he already has a lot of jobs.\n\nA Houthi-run health ministry said airstrikes killed 33 people near Yemen's capital, Sanaa. Reuters relayed the ministry's claim. This is a lifestyle feature about college students' wellness habits; it makes no specific checkable factual claim.\n\nReuters reported that Apple maintains an internal list of words blocked from iPhone autocomplete, including “Dictator Trump” and “Sleepy Joe.” The post accurately describes Reuters' reporting.\n\nSaudi Arabia's foreign ministry said Foreign Minister F","publishedAt":"2026-11-08T00:47:26.314Z","channel":{"id":"news","name":"Oncast News","language":"en"},"show":"News Tonight","verification":{"status":"verified","leadVerdict":"TRUE","notes":"TRUE: Israeli President Isaac Herzog has asked opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot, not Benjamin Netanyahu, to form the next government. 67 Knesset members recommended Eisenkot versus 46 for Netanyahu; Eisenkot's bloc won 48 seats and Netanyahu's bloc 53, with Arab-led parties winning a record 19. The formal mandate was to be handed over on Sunday.\nSource: [aljazeera.com](https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/11/7/israels-president-picks-eisenkot-over-netanyahu-to-form-next-government), [timesofisrael.com](https://w (https://x.com/AJEnglish/status/2119216550297444755)\n\nTRUE: The Wall Street Journal reported that the U.S. president said he offered a position to Dana White, and White replied that he already has a lot of jobs.\nSource: The Wall Street Journal NAMES: White = Dana White, CEO of the UFC (https://x.com/WSJ/status/2119223056077820328)\n\nTRUE: A Houthi-run health ministry said airstrikes killed 33 people near Yemen's capital, Sanaa. Reuters relayed the ministry's claim. This is a lifestyle feature about college students' wellness habits; it makes no specific checkable factual claim.\nSource: Reuters NAMES: Houthis = Iran-aligned Yemeni rebel movement POST 2119218523805261843: NOCLAIM The Wall Street Journal (https://x.com/Reuters/status/2119220873466880465)\n\nTRUE: Reuters reported that Apple maintains an internal list of words blocked from iPhone autocomplete, including “Dictator Trump” and “Sleepy Joe.” The post accurately describes Reuters' reporting.\nSource: Reuters NAMES: Apple = iPhone maker; “Dictator Trump” / “Sleepy Joe” = political nicknames (https://x.com/Reuters/status/2119225920590328115)\n\nTRUE: Saudi Arabia's foreign ministry said Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan and Qatar's Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani discussed Middle East tensions by phone; it was their second reported call in a week.\nSource: Al Jazeera NAMES: Faisal bin Farhan = Saudi foreign minister; Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani = Qatar's prime minister/foreign minister (https://x.com/AJEnglish/status/2119227136410292715)","claims":[{"verdict":"TRUE","summary":"Israeli President Isaac Herzog has asked opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot, not Benjamin Netanyahu, to form the next government. 67 Knesset members recommended Eisenkot versus 46 for Netanyahu; Eisenkot's bloc won 48 seats and Netanyahu's bloc 53, with Arab-led parties winning a record 19. The formal mandate was to be handed over on Sunday.","sourceName":"[aljazeera.com](https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/11/7/israels-president-picks-eisenkot-over-netanyahu-to-form-next-government), [timesofisrael.com](https://w","sourceUrl":"https://x.com/AJEnglish/status/2119216550297444755","claim":"Israel’s president had asked opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot to form the next government over his rival Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Al Jazeera’s Nour Odeh explains how opposition to Netanyahu brought different political parties together. https://t.co/fjg3XNQlWM","author":"Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish)"},{"verdict":"TRUE","summary":"The Wall Street Journal reported that the U.S. president said he offered a position to Dana White, and White replied that he already has a lot of jobs.","sourceName":"The Wall Street Journal NAMES: White = Dana White, CEO of the UFC","sourceUrl":"https://x.com/WSJ/status/2119223056077820328","claim":"The president says he’s offered the position to White, who noted “I’ve got a lot of jobs already.” https://t.co/VFTR4fT09M","author":"The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ)"},{"verdict":"TRUE","summary":"A Houthi-run health ministry said airstrikes killed 33 people near Yemen's capital, Sanaa. Reuters relayed the ministry's claim. This is a lifestyle feature about college students' wellness habits; it makes no specific checkable factual claim.","sourceName":"Reuters NAMES: Houthis = Iran-aligned Yemeni rebel movement POST 2119218523805261843: NOCLAIM The Wall Street Journal","sourceUrl":"https://x.com/Reuters/status/2119220873466880465","claim":"Houthi-run health ministry says airstrikes kill 33 near Yemen capital https://t.co/HdhtzYwxRa","author":"@Reuters"},{"verdict":"TRUE","summary":"Reuters reported that Apple maintains an internal list of words blocked from iPhone autocomplete, including “Dictator Trump” and “Sleepy Joe.” The post accurately describes Reuters' reporting.","sourceName":"Reuters NAMES: Apple = iPhone maker; “Dictator Trump” / “Sleepy Joe” = political nicknames","sourceUrl":"https://x.com/Reuters/status/2119225920590328115","claim":"🔊 Reuters reveals Apple's secret list of words blocked from iPhone autocomplete, including ‘Dictator Trump’ and ‘Sleepy Joe’. Find out why on the Reuters World News podcast https://t.co/9WrDK2Y2za https://t.co/SoyAwxy4gk","author":"@Reuters"},{"verdict":"TRUE","summary":"Saudi Arabia's foreign ministry said Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan and Qatar's Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani discussed Middle East tensions by phone; it was their second reported call in a week.","sourceName":"Al Jazeera NAMES: Faisal bin Farhan = Saudi foreign minister; Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani = Qatar's prime minister/foreign minister","sourceUrl":"https://x.com/AJEnglish/status/2119227136410292715","claim":"Saudi FM Faisal bin Farhan and Qatar’s Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani discussed Middle East tensions by phone on Saturday, their second reported call in a week, Saudi Arabia’s foreign ministry said. 🔴 LIVE updates: https://t.co/EYwzdlnmi7 https://t.co/c441I5b6Dy","author":"Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish)"}]},"sources":[{"url":"https://x.com/AJEnglish/status/2119216550297444755","name":"[aljazeera.com](https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2026/11/7/israels-president-picks-eisenkot-over-netanyahu-to-form-next-government), [timesofisrael.com](https://w","kind":"x","verdict":"TRUE","author":"Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish)"},{"url":"https://x.com/WSJ/status/2119223056077820328","name":"The Wall Street Journal NAMES: White = Dana White, CEO of the UFC","kind":"x","verdict":"TRUE","author":"The Wall Street Journal (@WSJ)"},{"url":"https://x.com/Reuters/status/2119220873466880465","name":"Reuters NAMES: Houthis = Iran-aligned Yemeni rebel movement POST 2119218523805261843: NOCLAIM The Wall Street Journal","kind":"x","verdict":"TRUE","author":"@Reuters"},{"url":"https://x.com/Reuters/status/2119225920590328115","name":"Reuters NAMES: Apple = iPhone maker; “Dictator Trump” / “Sleepy Joe” = political nicknames","kind":"x","verdict":"TRUE","author":"@Reuters"},{"url":"https://x.com/AJEnglish/status/2119227136410292715","name":"Al Jazeera NAMES: Faisal bin Farhan = Saudi foreign minister; Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani = Qatar's prime minister/foreign minister","kind":"x","verdict":"TRUE","author":"Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish)"}],"url":"https://oncast.fm/story/1794098846314-news-segment-israel-president-picks-eisenkot-over-netanyahu","listenUrl":"https://oncast.fm/c/news","attribution":{"publisher":"Oncast","site":"https://oncast.fm","url":"https://oncast.fm/story/1794098846314-news-segment-israel-president-picks-eisenkot-over-netanyahu","cite":"Cite https://oncast.fm/story/1794098846314-news-segment-israel-president-picks-eisenkot-over-netanyahu and the original source links. Fact-check by Oncast (oncast.fm)."},"hostsSaid":[{"host":"Bella","text":"Israel’s president just asked Gadi Eisenkot to form the next government — not Netanyahu."},{"host":"Brian","text":"Al Jazeera posted that on X. That’s a genuine political earthquake."},{"host":"Bella","text":"Sixty-seven lawmakers recommended Eisenkot. Only forty-six backed Netanyahu."},{"host":"Brian","text":"The formal mandate goes to him Sunday: twenty-eight days, and a possible fourteen-day extension."},{"host":"Bella","text":"And here’s what people miss: Eisenkot’s bloc won forty-eight seats. Netanyahu’s won fifty-three."},{"host":"Brian","text":"So the bigger bloc is still Netanyahu’s. But the Knesset math gave Eisenkot the nod."},{"host":"Bella","text":"Exactly. Opposition parties, including Arab-led parties that took a record number of seats, lined up behind Eisenkot to end Netanyahu’s tenure."},{"host":"Brian","text":"Al Jazeera’s Nour Odeh says the hard work starts now. Eisenkot has to build a coalition of at least sixty-one seats."},{"host":"Bella","text":"Ahmad Tibi says he expects a minority government with external support from Arab parties."},{"host":"Brian","text":"That’s where I get skeptical. Eisenkot has ruled out a formal coalition with Arab-led parties. So how does he govern, with their votes from outside?"},{"host":"Bella","text":"That’s the real question. Netanyahu is already pushing a ‘national unity government’ and warning about ‘terrorist supporters’."},{"host":"Brian","text":"Oh, come on. That’s a smear, not an argument. Arab-led parties aren’t terrorist supporters because they backed Eisenkot."},{"host":"Bella","text":"But it’s not irrelevant. Avigdor Liberman says he won’t vote for a minority government dependent on Arab parties."},{"host":"Brian","text":"And Liberman is willing to compromise on the ultra-Orthodox draft issue to get a government with Haredi parties. That’s a huge shift."},{"host":"Bella","text":"So you have two possible coalitions: Eisenkot with outside support from Arab parties, or a messy unity deal that keeps Netanyahu out."},{"host":"Brian","text":"My take: the opposition united around one goal — remove Netanyahu, Ben-Gvir and Smotrich. That’s real, but it’s fragile."},{"host":"Bella","text":"And that’s my worry. A minority government that depends on parties it won’t formally include can collapse in months."},{"host":"Brian","text":"Maybe. But Netanyahu lost the room. Sixty-seven recommendations is a clear majority. That’s not a fluke."},{"host":"Bella","text":"I’ll give you that. Yet recommendations aren’t a coalition. Eisenkot still has to deliver sixty-one actual votes."},{"host":"Brian","text":"Which could force him to choose: compromise with Arab parties or swallow a unity deal with Likud minus Netanyahu’s far-right allies."},{"host":"Bella","text":"And Eisenkot’s camp has already said Likud must break with the far right first. That’s a demand, not a negotiation."},{"host":"Brian","text":"This is the best political fight in Israel in years, and we’re watching it live."},{"host":"Brian","text":"Different world entirely: Reuters posted on X that Apple keeps an internal list of words blocked from iPhone autocomplete."},{"host":"Bella","text":"Including ‘Dictator Trump’ and ‘Sleepy Joe.’ That is... a choice."},{"host":"Brian","text":"Apple won’t auto-predict those political nicknames. Reuters describes it as secret."},{"host":"Bella","text":"I’m less shocked by the nicknames than by the fact this list exists at all. Autocorrect is already a menace."},{"host":"Brian","text":"But is this neutral patching, or a company curating what you can type?"},{"host":"Bella","text":"Apple is a private company. It can block whatever it wants in its own software. That’s not state censorship."},{"host":"Brian","text":"I agree it’s legal. But if one side’s insult gets blocked and the other’s doesn’t, that’s not neutral. People will notice."},{"host":"Bella","text":"Do we know it’s only those two? The list is secret. For all we know, it blocks dozens of slurs from both sides."},{"host":"Brian","text":"That’s fair. But the two names Reuters flagged are both about presidents. It looks partisan even if it isn’t."},{"host":"Bella","text":"And here’s where we disagree: autocomplete doesn’t owe us insults. It’s a private product, not the public square."},{"host":"Brian","text":"But phones are where the public square lives now. If Apple quietly suppresses political words, that should be reported — and it is."},{"host":"Bella","text":"Exactly. That’s why this story matters, and why we’re talking about it."},{"host":"Bella","text":"Meanwhile, the president says he’s offered a position to Dana White. White’s response, via The Wall Street Journal on X: ‘I’ve got a lot of jobs already’."},{"host":"Brian","text":"Dana White running something else? What job, exactly?"},{"host":"Bella","text":"The Journal didn’t spell out the post in its X teaser. The president says he offered; White says he has enough jobs."},{"host":"Brian","text":"If I were running UFC and whatever else, I might say the same. The man already has a lot on his plate."},{"host":"Bella","text":"It’s also a very Dana White answer: blunt, a little dismissive, and he’s not wrong."},{"host":"Brian","text":"The White House probably didn’t expect a no in the form of a joke. But it’s a good one."},{"host":"Brian","text":"From jobs to school: The Wall Street Journal posted on X that today’s undergrads are done with instant ramen and all-nighters."},{"host":"Bella","text":"Now they’re maximizing protein, tracking sleep, obsessing over hydration. I feel old and dehydrated."},{"host":"Brian","text":"The Journal describes a campus culture where sleep is a score and hydration is a flex."},{"host":"Bella","text":"Some of this is healthy. Sleep tracking beats all-nighters on energy drinks."},{"host":"Brian","text":"But there’s a downside. They’re optimizing the fun out of college."},{"host":"Bella","text":"And if you’re carrying a gallon jug to a lecture, that’s not wellness, that’s a personality."},{"host":"Brian","text":"I’ll allow one laugh. But the broader point: this is anxiety wearing a wellness watch."},{"host":"Bella","text":"That’s the line. When rest becomes a job, even recovery gets optimized."},{"host":"Brian","text":"Good place to leave it."}]}