Benjamin Netanyahu has failed to win a ruling majority, according to news agency Reuters on Wednesday. The election, which came out as a virtual tie between his right-wing bloc and a centre-left grouping led by former military chief Benny Gantz.
Israel’s two main political parties are deadlocked after national elections, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu facing an uphill battle to keep his job.
Israel’s two main political parties were deadlocked Wednesday after an unprecedented repeat election, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu facing an uphill battle to hold on to his job. The election’s seeming political kingmaker, Avigdor Lieberman, said he’ll insist upon a secular unity government between Netanyahu’s Likud and Benny Gantz’s Blue and White parties, who are running neck-and-neck to become the country’s largest party.
Addressing his supporters early Wednesday, Netanyahu refused to concede defeat and vowed to work to form a new government that excludes Arab parties.
Speaking on Kan Bet Israel's national radio four days before the parliamentary elections, Netanyahu said a war "would be the last option".
Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday announced to annex Jordan Valley, West Bank settlements if elected.
The message had the famous Hindi lyrics "yeh dosti hum nahi todenge" (We will not break this friendship) of the song from the 1975 movie "Sholay", starring Amitabh Bachchan, Dharmendra and Hema Malini, and emoticons conveying that Israel loves India.
Ahead of an unprecedented snap polls on September 17, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud Party has put banners featuring his pictures with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi, US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin to lure support by presenting him in a "different league".
He has persevered through scandals, crises and conflicts, winning election after election even as the country grows more bitterly polarized. His supporters credit him with keeping Israel safe and prosperous, maintaining its Jewish character and boosting its standing internationally.
Israeli media had speculated that after US President Donald Trump handed Netanyahu valuable political prizes by recognising Jerusalem as Israel's capital and its annexation of the Golan Heights, Trump might expect concessions in return when he finally unveils his long-awaited proposals for Israeli-Palestinian peace.
The Netanyahus have denied any wrongdoing, saying they are the victims of a "political witch hunt driven by a hostile leftist media and the courts".
Trump, in his moment of brain fade, had earlier recognised Golan Heights as a part of Israel. He recently signed a "nice" on the map showing Golan Heights as Israel's part.
After a hard-fought campaign and a day of fluctuating political fates, Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appears to be all set for his record breaking fifth term in office.
The outcome affirmed Israel’s continued tilt to the right and further dimmed hopes of a negotiated solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Re-election will also give Netanyahu an important boost as he braces for the likelihood of criminal charges in a series of corruption scandals.
Israelis on Tuesday voted in the country's most closely fought election in years that will decide whether incumbent Netanyahu will get another term to become the longest serving premier in the Jewish state's history or be replaced with a former army chief.
The prime minister has denied any wrongdoing, dismissing the accusations as a witch hunt orchestrated by the media.
Addressing lawmakers in Ankara Tuesday, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called Israel “the world’s most Zionist, fascist, racist state.”
"The Jerusalem district prosecutor a short time ago filed charges against the prime minister's wife," the statement said.
It was by far the deadliest day of cross-border violence since a devastating 2014 war between Israel and Gaza’s Hamas rulers, and further dimmed the already bleak prospects for President Donald Trump’s hoped-for peace plan.
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