Israel’s final election results show that neither major bloc reached a majority in the 120-seat Knesset, leaving the country in an election deadlock. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has accused Arab parties of stealing the election, but the sources contain no verified proof of that claim. Most of the results and allegations come from Euronews.
According to Euronews, Netanyahu’s bloc finished on 53 seats. The opposition camp, led by Gadi Eisenkot’s Yashar party, ended on 48. Netanyahu’s Likud remained the largest single party with 27 seats, while Arab parties secured a record 19 seats between them.
Netanyahu accused Arab parties of "stealing" the election. He called on police and the Shin Bet to carry out a "thorough investigation into election fraud."
Likud alleged that foreign funding was used to influence voters, focusing on claims that the Ra’am party received money from Qatar. According to Euronews, Ra’am leader Mansour Abbas reportedly denied any wrongdoing and said he would welcome an investigation.
Eisenkot called foreign interference "unacceptable and extremely serious," according to Euronews. He urged the Shin Bet to investigate fully and immediately, without bias.
The sources contain no independent investigation result and no evidence supporting the fraud or Qatar funding allegations. No Qatari government response is reported.
Under Israeli law, the president assigns the task of forming a government to a candidate, who has 28 days to do so, extendable by up to 14 days. If that fails, a second leader gets a 28-day chance, and then a third candidate gets 14 days. If all attempts fail, another election is called.
According to Africanews, opposition politicians are meeting to explore coalition options. Euronews does not say which party or bloc Eisenkot would back.
President Isaac Herzog will consult party leaders and assign a candidate to attempt forming a government. The exact timing of those consultations is not stated. Only a headline and a short excerpt were available from NPR World and Africanews, so their details could not be checked beyond the lead.
Sources
This article was written with AI assistance from the published reporting listed above. It is part of the World Brief daily news podcast.