Following the loss of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's parliamentary majority, President Isaac Herzog initiated discussions with party leaders to establish the next government. Initial meetings saw three religious-nationalist factions support Netanyahu, while a fourth backed Eisenkot, with eight more parties slated to meet Herzog on Thursday. In parallel, election authorities and the attorney general have pushed back against unproven foreign interference claims brought forward by the Shin Bet intelligence service. If the designated candidate fails to build a viable coalition within the allotted time, Israel will face another national election early next year.
Key points
President Isaac Herzog countered efforts to discredit the election results by declaring t…: President Isaac Herzog countered efforts to discredit the election results by declaring the certified vote legally binding.
Israel faces the prospect of a new election early next year if the selected candidate can…: Israel faces the prospect of a new election early next year if the selected candidate cannot assemble a coalition.
Isaac Herzog condemned recent racist rhetoric while demanding that foreign interference i…: Isaac Herzog condemned recent racist rhetoric while demanding that foreign interference inquiries avoid smearing Arab Israeli voters.
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Jerusalem: Israeli President Isaac Herzog on Wednesday accepted the certified results of last week's parliamentary elections as legally binding and began consultations with party representatives on forming a new government.
The move dealt a blow to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's efforts to discredit the vote, in which he and his allies lost their majority in parliament, known as the Knesset, while Arab-led parties made historic gains.
"The elections are over. Now is the time to face reality," Herzog said.
Netanyahu and his supporters have repeatedly made unsubstantiated claims that Arab-led parties had "stolen" the election, possibly with foreign assistance.
Herzog began consultations with party leaders on Wednesday night to determine whom to designate to form a government - a process that could bring Netanyahu's opponents to power.
Netanyahu's Likud party did not respond to a request for comment.
A separate investigation by the Shin Bet intelligence service, which is headed by David Zini, a Netanyahu appointee and loyalist, into allegations of foreign interference in the election is still ongoing.
In a private meeting Wednesday of the elections committee's members, its…
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