A demanding stretch of coalition-building is getting under way in Israel with Eisenkot at the centre of it. As the opposition figure handed the task, he has four weeks to put together a workable government. Getting there requires partnership with either Arab representation or the ultra-Orthodox bloc. The purpose is to form a government capable of taking on long-serving Prime Minister Netanyahu. Each of the two possible paths carries its own obstacles, which is why the task has been framed as a hurdle race from the start.