Caretaker role could limit Netanyahu but not rule out war with Iran

Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to face more constraints as Israel's caretaker prime minister after Tuesday's election, but experts say his government could still retain significant powers including when it comes to waging war on Iran.

Neither Netanyahu’s right-wing coalition nor an opposition bloc led by former military chief Gadi Eisenkot is projected by Israeli media to win a majority in the country’s 120-seat legislature. Eisenkot has acknowledged the prime minister was still in office as a caretaker but issued a warning that Netanyahu might use security for political ends.

Netanyahu's office has previously rejected accusations he is using the Iran conflict for political gain. His office did not immediately return a request for comment on Wednesday.

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“If you look at the letter of the law, a caretaker government has the same authority, has the same powers as a regular government,” said Guy Lurie, a research fellow at the Israel Democracy Institute, adding however that a caretaker government “has a duty of restraint” and more limited discretion to act in some areas.

A caretaker government faces limitations when it comes to issues such as appointments, but has leeway to act in matters where there is a public interest, analysts say.

“In general, security issues are the clearest exception to this duty of restraint,” said Or Asher, a researcher at the Tel Aviv-based Tachlith Institute, noting that Israel's supreme court has previously held that a caretaker government must avoid far-reaching decisions unless they are justified by a pressing necessity.

“The Supreme Court has historically avoided intervening in decisions to go to war, and parliamentary oversight is at its thinnest in the weeks after the new Knesset convenes and before its committees are formed,” Asher said, adding that “a caretaker prime minister can legally take Israel to war, including against Iran”.

After the final tally is in, Israel’s President Isaac Herzog is expected to consult ⁠party leaders and then tap the candidate he believes has the best chance of forming a government, with the nominee then getting up to 42 days to establish a government.