Differences Between Likud Party of Netanyahu or Yashar With Eisenkot

 Nadene Goldfoot      The General and his son:  just before son's death                                               

                                                                                                                                        

 His son was killed recently in Gaza.  Master Sgt. (Res.) Gal Meir Eisenkot was the 25-year-old son of Gadi Eisenkot, a former IDF Chief of Staff and Israeli politician.  Who he was: A 25-year-old reservist and combat soldier in the 551st Reserve Commando Brigade’s 699th Battalion who was also a computer science student.  Death in Gaza: He was killed in action on December 7, 2023, in northern Gaza (Jabalia camp) when an explosive device detonated in a tunnel shaft near troops. Family context: His death was part of a heavy personal toll the war took on Gadi Eisenkot's family; a nephew (Sgt. Maor Cohen Eisenkot) was killed in Gaza the following day, and another nephew (Capt. Yogev Pazy) was killed in November 2024.

General Gadi Eisenkot leads Yashar (stylized as Yashar! with Eisenkot), a centrist political party in Israel. 

Formation. Eisenkot founded the party on September 16, 2025, after splitting from Benny Gantz's National Unity alliance. 
Meaning and Ideology. The Hebrew word Yashar translates to "straight" or "honest". The party runs on a centrist, liberal Zionist platform.
Recent Standing. In the October 27, 2026 Israeli legislative election, Yashar won 21 seats in the 120-member Knesset, making it the second-largest party behind Likud. On November 8, 2026, Israeli President Isaac Herzog officially tasked Eisenkot with the first opportunity to form a governing coalition.
                       Likud (1973-2026)

                                    Begin's father, Sharon's Grandfather                                        

    Menahem  Begin and Ariel Sharon  Here, PM Begin meets Agricultural Minister Sharon
The Likud Party (officially Likud – National Liberal Movement) is a major right-wing political party in Israel. Long before Menachem Begin and Ariel Sharon became Israeli prime ministers, their families knew each other quite well in the "old country"...Begin's father and Sharon's grandfather worked together at a bank and Jewish self-defense organization established following brutal pogroms in the region... and Sharon's grandmother was even the midwife at Menachem Begin's birth!
Foundation and Early History (1973–1977)
Creation: Founded in September 1973 as an electoral alliance of right-wing parties—including Herut, the Liberal Party, the Free Center, the National List, and the Labor Movement for Greater Israel—led by Menachem Begin and Ariel Sharon. 
Ideology: Rooted in the Revisionist Zionism of Zeev Jabotinsky, combining a nationalist platform (opposing territorial concessions in the West Bank and Gaza) with support for a free-market economy and traditional Jewish culture.
The 1977 "Upheaval": Likud won a landslide victory in the 1977 Knesset elections under Begin, marking the first time in Israel's history that a right-wing party defeated the long-ruling Labor Party. 
Camp David Accords: As Prime Minister, Begin signed the historic 1979 Egypt–Israel Peace Treaty, earning a Nobel Peace Prize alongside Egyptian President Anwar Sadat.
Leadership Transitions-Netanyahu and the 1990s (1983–1999)
Yitzhak Shamir Era: Begin resigned in 1983 and was succeeded by Yitzhak Shamir, who served as Prime Minister during the 1980s and early 1990s (including leading rotation governments and managing the Madrid Peace Conference). 
Rise of Benjamin Netanyahu: Following Likud's defeat in 1992, Benjamin Netanyahu took over as party leader in 1993. He narrowly won the 1996 prime ministerial election following the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin, serving his first term until losing to Labor's Ehud Barak in 1999.
The 2000s: Sharon, the Kadima Split, and Return to Power (2001–2009)
Ariel Sharon's Government: Ariel Sharon returned Likud to power by defeating Barak in the 2001 election. Sharon oversaw the construction of the separation barrier and later the 2005 Gaza disengagement plan (unilateral withdrawal of Israeli troops and settlers from Gaza). 
The Kadima Split (2005): Internal opposition to the Gaza withdrawal led Sharon to leave Likud in late 2005 to form the centrist Kadima party. This caused Likud to slump significantly in the 2006 elections. 
Netanyahu's Return (2009): Netanyahu reclaimed party leadership and led Likud back to victory in the 2009 legislative elections, beginning a long consecutive tenure as Prime Minister. 
Recent History and Coalition Politics (2010–Present)
Extended Dominance & Coalition Shifts: Likud remained the largest or co-largest party through the turbulent 2019–2021 election cycles—which saw high-profile departures like Gideon Sa'ar forming New Hope.
Return and Current Status: After a brief stint in opposition starting in 2021, Netanyahu and Likud won back a plurality/majority block in the 2022 Israeli legislative election and continued navigating domestic judicial reforms, regional security challenges, and wartime governance.
The Knesset (כְּנֶסֶת) is Israel’s parliament and serves as the country’s legislative branch, responsible for passing laws, overseeing the government, and representing the citizens of Israel. 
The word Knesset comes from the Hebrew verb lehitkanes (לְהִתְכַּנֵּס), which means “to come together” or “to gather.” But the name is also a direct reference to Anshei HaKnesset HaGedolah, also known as the Great Assembly, the last Jewish governing and legislative body during the Second Temple period.  The Great Assembly had 120 members, and so too today our Knesset has exactly 120 members, despite the growing population in Israel. That number has never changed and maintains its historical connection.
The 26th Knesset was sworn in yesterday, but a plan to form a majority government is nowhere in sight yet. Netanyahu is calling for a unity government, with himself as prime minister, while trying to get the Haredi parties not to join the coalition Eisenkot is trying to build. On the other hand, although it seems as though their demands for Haredi army service seem to have tempered a bit, the parties that make up Eisenkot's potential coalition partners might find it impossible to meet Haredi demands to join them -- which would then leave the Islamist Ra'am party the only other choice to form a government. At this point, there's no way to know how this will play out and who, if anyone, will be able to form a government.
Resource:
Added:  7:00am 7/11/26 
israelAM
CNN
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Jolani/Sharaa's Terrorism Against USA and Israel

 Nadene Goldfoot                                            

                                                         Jolani aka Ahmed al-Sharaa

During his militant and terrorist period (primarily spanning his involvement with Al-Qaeda in Iraq, the Islamic State of Iraq, and later as the founder and leader of the Al-Qaeda affiliate Jabhat al-Nusra in Syria), Abu Mohammad al-Jolani (Ahmed al-Sharaa) engaged in direct conflict and operations involving the U.S. and regional dynamics with Israel:

Actions Against the United States

Combat in the Iraqi Insurgency: After the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, Jolani travelled to Iraq and joined Al-Qaeda in Iraq (AQI), fighting directly against American military forces in the Iraqi insurgency. 
Imprisonment by U.S. Forces: U.S. and Iraqi forces captured Jolani around 2005 or 2006, and he was held in U.S.-run military detention facilities in Iraq—including Camp Bucca and Abu Ghraib—before being released in 2011. 
Leadership of an Al-Qaeda Affiliate Targeting Western Interests: Upon returning to Syria in 2011, he founded Jabhat al-Nusra (the Nusra Front), which was formally designated as a foreign terrorist organization by the U.S. Department of State in 2012/2013. Nusra carried out deadly bombings and asymmetric attacks in Syrian cities (such as Damascus), and the U.S. placed a $10 million bounty on Jolani's head, viewing him as a direct extension of Al-Qaeda's global network. (Jolani later publicly distanced Nusra from Al-Qaeda in 2016 and eventually pivoted toward political rehabilitation after toppling the Assad regime in late 2024).

    1967  IDF in Golan
Actions and Posture Regarding Israel

Regional/Sectarian Fronts (The Golan & Southern Syria): During the Syrian Civil War, Jabhat al-Nusra operated extensively in southern Syria and areas near the Israeli-controlled Golan Heights (such as Quneitra Governorate). 
      How He Took Over Presidency of Syria 
Avoidance of Direct Military Confrontation with Israel: Unlike his war against the Assad regime, Iran, or Hezbollah, Jolani largely avoided direct offensive military engagements against Israel during his Nusra/HTS leadership period. 
Instead, his group focused its energy on toppling Bashar al-Assad's government inside Syria. The Syrian government and the regime of President Bashar al-Assad fell on December 8, 2024, ending over 50 years of Baath Party rule when Islamist-led rebels spearheaded by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) captured Damascus. 
During and immediately after the collapse, iconic images and videos documented the fall of the regime:
Tearing down portraits and statues: Crowds and opposition fighters across Damascus, Homs, Hama, and other cities were filmed and photographed tearing down large portraits and billboards of Bashar al-Assad and toppling statues of his father and predecessor, Hafez al-Assad. 
Ransacking and entry into palaces: Images emerged of rebels and citizens entering Bashar al-Assad's abandoned presidential palace in Damascus and gathering in key public areas like Umayyad Square and the Umayyad Mosque.
Opening of prisons: Widespread photos and footage documented the opening of notorious detention centers, such as Sednaya, as prisoners were freed.  
Post-Assad Stance: Following the fall of the Assad regime in December 2024 and his transition into leadership, Jolani (using his real name Ahmed al-Sharaa) publicly rejected external aggression or efforts by Israel to divide or strike Syrian territory, while simultaneously navigating complex regional diplomacy.

Syria is not exactly what the Wall Street Journal sees.  They say, "The December 2024 collapse of Bashar al-Assad’s regime sharply changed the regional orientation. Syria was suddenly no longer the lifeline of the Shiite axis on the northern front, through which Iranian weapons and money passed to Hezbollah.   Instead, Damascus belongs to Ahmed al-Sharaa, a Sunni leader and former commander of al Qaeda’s Syrian affiliate, who had fought Hezbollah for years." 

 Direct Combat in the Syrian Civil War and Lebanon (2010s)

The relationship escalated from rhetoric into full-scale battlefield warfare after both groups intervened in the Syrian Civil War on opposing sides:

The Syrian-Lebanese Border and Qalamoun: Al-Qaeda’s Syrian affiliate, the Nusra Front (Jabhat al-Nusra), fought pitched battles against Hezbollah forces supporting the Syrian government. This included heavy clashes in the Qalamoun mountains and along the rugged border region between eastern Lebanon and Syria. 
Syrian Golan Heights: Al-Qaeda-supporter networks and local insurgents established a military presence on the Syrian Golan facing Syrian army units and embedded Hezbollah forces. 
Sectarian Retaliation: The conflict spilled over into sectarian violence and bombings in Lebanon (such as attacks outside Sunni mosques in Tripoli), with al-Qaeda-linked factions blaming Hezbollah for backing the Bashar al-Assad regime.

 Al-Qaeda.  Background: Al-Sharaa previously served as the emir of Al-Nusra Front (an Al-Qaeda affiliate) and later led Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), a Salafi-jihadist rebel and governing group based in Idlib Province. Over time, HTS publicly distanced itself from Al-Qaeda, and al-Sharaa began using his birth name while attempting to rebrand as a pragmatic transitional leader.  But as a terrorist as Jolani, he's the same terrorist to the people of Syria who know him well.  They don't like him at all.  I've met two already who verify this; one who has felt the pain of his prison.  

Origin and History of HTS: Formed on January 28, 2017, as a merger of Jabhat Fatah al-Sham and other anti-Assad rebel groups. It evolved from Jabhat al-Nusra, which was originally established in 2011/2012.

Leadership: Led by Abu Muhammad al-Julani (also known as Ahmed al-Sharah).

Role in the Syrian Conflict: HTS played a central role in leading the military offensive that toppled the Bashar al-Assad regime in December 2024. 

Governance and Ideology: Rooted in Sunni Islamism and Salafism, HTS historically focused on a local Syrian agenda (overthrowing the Assad regime) rather than global jihad. It operated through the civilian-led Syrian Salvation Government in northwestern Syria (Idlib Governorate).

International Designations: HTS is designated as a terrorist organization by the United States, the United Nations, the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia due to its historical roots and extremist ideology, remaining subject to international sanctions.

Some facts:  Ahmed al-Sharaa's AKA was Jolani, a leading terrorist of al Qaeda.

"So far, Israel has treated Mr. al-Sharaa with skepticism", but knows he was a terrorist and still is.  it's Trump that is taken in by him.  Israel "responded to the Assad regime’s fall militarily, destroying Syrian capabilities and seizing a forward line in the Syrian Golan. Mr. al-Sharaa’s past raises legitimate questions about whether his political transformation from jihadist to suit-wearing rebuilder of Syria is genuine or tactical. 

Even if he is truly committed to restoring Syria and stabilizing relations with Israel, the country will remain fragile. Southern Syria is vulnerable to terrorist activity; such groups have operated near the Israeli border before. The regime’s relationship with Turkey is also troubling, while the unresolved dispute over the Golan Heights remains.  

Netanyahu was not taken in by Jolani/Sharaa like Trump was.  The question is if a new Israeli government would be or not.  

General Eisenkot, here in 1978 picture at induction, gives his opinion of Jolani.

General Gadi Eisenkot is a soft-spoken, reserved, and pragmatic former career general who served as the 21st Chief of the General Staff of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) from 2015 to 2019.  Military Career & Rise: Rising through the infantry and the Golani Brigade, Eisenkot spent four decades in the military, holding major command roles including the Northern Command, Operations Branch, and serving as military secretary to the prime minister. He was the first IDF Chief of Staff of Mizrahi Jewish descent (with family roots in Morocco).

Skepticism as a Peace Partner. Upon being tasked with forming a government in November 2026, Eisenkot stated that al-Julani comes from an extremist background linked to the Islamic State and remains a jihadist. Eisenkot rejected U.S. assessments that the Syrian leader has moderated, declaring that Israel does not view him as a peace partner, but rather as a threat that must be managed. 
Military Presence in Syria. Eisenkot affirmed that the Israeli military will not withdraw from Mount Hermon or the buffer zones it entered in southern Syria following the fall of Assad on December 8, 2024. He stated that Israeli forces will remain in those areas as long as Russian and Turkish forces stay in Syria. 
Nuanced Diplomatic Framing. Earlier in the 2026 election cycle, Eisenkot's broader approach drew criticism from hard-line members of Benjamin Netanyahu's outgoing coalition. In August 2026, Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli called al-Sharaa "Israel's next enemy" and criticized Eisenkot for previously viewing the political transition in Syria as a potential strategic opportunity for Israel to engage with. Similarly, Al-Monitor noted in October 2026 that an Eisenkot-led government could potentially open the door to diplomatic shifts involving the United States, Iran, and Syria compared to the outgoing government.