# Avigdor Lieberman, a challenger to Netanyahu with his eye on the top job

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/avigdor-lieberman-a-challenger-to-netanyahu-with-his-eye-on-the-top-job/
- Published: 2026-11-13T02:00:08+00:00
- Updated: 2026-11-13T10:37:58+00:00
- Original publisher: Le Monde (publisher lean: Left)
- Original article: https://www.lemonde.fr/en/international/article/2026/11/13/israeli-politician-avigdor-lieberman-a-challenger-to-netanyahu-with-his-eye-on-the-top-job_6779335_4.html
- Topics: Government, Middle East, Politics, World

## Key points

- Lieberman’s seven MPs could shape who forms Israel’s next government.
- He is negotiating with ultra-Orthodox parties despite past opposition to their exemptions.
- His ambitions and shifting alliances have unsettled the opposition bloc.

## Summary

Avigdor Lieberman is a key player in efforts to replace Benjamin Netanyahu, but his shifting positions have raised questions about whether he is backing Gadi Eisenkot or pursuing the premiership himself. Eisenkot has been tasked with forming a government, and Lieberman’s seven MPs could help secure a majority or prevent one from taking shape.

Lieberman has opened talks with two ultra-Orthodox parties, which hold 13 seats, despite previously opposing their military-service exemptions. The opposition bloc around Eisenkot has 48 of the Knesset’s 120 seats, while Arab parties hold 19; Lieberman has ruled out a government reliant on Arab-party support. He says Eisenkot should become prime minister, but has also stated that he wants the job, and his outreach to the ultra-Orthodox has already drawn criticism from within his own party.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.