Former IDF chief of staff Lt.-Gen. (res.) Gadi Eisenkot announced on Tuesday that he has established a new political party.
His party, he said, is called “Yashar! With Eisenkot.” The Hebrew word Yashar has several meanings, including “straight,” “honest,” and “direct.”
Before resigning from the Knesset in June, Eisenkot was an MK and the second-in-command in MK Benny Gantz’s party, Blue and White.
“The establishment of the Yashar! With Eisenkot Party is a personal and national duty,” the former IDF chief of staff said upon the announcement.
Alongside Eisenkot, the party consists of 120 founding members from Israel’s hi-tech, economic, and security sectors. Among those listed are Nir Zohar, the president of WIX; economic expert Prof. (emeritus) Manuel Trajtenberg; a former director-general of the Prime Minister’s Office, Yoav Horowitz; ex-MK and National Unity Party member Matan Kahana; and Shir Siegel, the daughter of released hostages Aviva and Keith Siegel.
Eisenkot said that the party “will act as a source for repairing, healing, and hope for Israeli society.”
In the spirit of the Declaration of Independence
“It will place the security and national interests of the State of Israel above all other considerations,” he said.
“It will establish a broad governing alternative, and serve as a foundation for further unifications, all to ensure the existence of Israel as a Jewish, democratic, and strong state in the spirit of the Declaration of Independence,” he continued.
“The citizens of Israel deserve leadership that serves the public with integrity and a deep commitment to our shared future for Israel’s prosperity as a model society in the eyes of its citizens and the world,” Eisenkot said.
According to the party’s bylaws, Eisenkot will serve as chairperson and appoint its members as a temporary provision during the party’s formative stage and until one year after the 2026 elections, KAN News reported.
Following the announcement, opposition leader Yair Lapid (Yesh Atid) congratulated him.
“I congratulate Eisenkot on the establishment of the Yashar Party. Together we will act, succeed, and change the direction of the State of Israel,” he said.
Since leaving the Blue and White Party, Eisenkot has engaged in talks with opposition MKs and former prime minister Naftali Bennett to discuss creating a new leadership in Israel ahead of the next elections.
Eisenkot met with Lapid last week, when the two agreed to convene a meeting this coming Saturday with the leaders of what has been termed the “change bloc.”
Those included in this bloc are Lapid, Eisenkot, Bennett, Gantz, Yisrael Beytenu head MK Avigdor Liberman, and the Democrats leader Yair Golan.
In response to Eisenkot’s new party announcement, Golan called for unity, saying, “Gadi, it is time to unite, win, and save Israel.”
“Israel is at its most dangerous moment, [Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu is leading Israeli democracy into the gravest crisis in our history. We do not have the privilege of splits within the democratic camp,” Golan continued.
During a KAN Knew interview in August, Eisenkot said that he would “do everything to ensure that the destructive government does not continue in office.”
“And when I say I will do everything, it includes the possibility of announcing that I will run for prime minister. Right now, it’s too early, but there are excellent candidates. I am currently busy building a governmental alternative,” he had said at the time.