Israel's President Isaac Herzog will ask veteran leader Benjamin Netanyahu to form a new government on Sunday, the president's office said. Picture: Philippe Wojazer/ Reuters
Israel’s President Isaac Herzog will ask veteran leader Benjamin Netanyahu to form a new government on Sunday, the president's office said.
The announcement came after the president concluded political consultations with the elected factions on Friday, in which 64 members of Israel’s 120-seat parliament recommended that Netanyahu assemble the new coalition, a statement said.
Former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party placed first in last week's election, ending an unprecedented stalemate in Israel after five elections in less than four years. He is likely to ally with far-right and religious parties to achieve a stable parliamentary majority.
Israel’s longest-serving premier, Netanyahu is on trial on corruption charges, which he denies.
Israel's fifth election in less than four years was dominated by the out-sized personality of Netanyahu, whose legal battles have fed the stalemate blocking Israel’s political system since 2019 and deepened the split between his supporters and opponents.
The campaign was shaken up by firebrand West Bank settler Itamar Ben-Gvir and his ultra-nationalist Religious Zionism party, now poised to be the third-largest party in parliament after surging in from the political margins.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz congratulated Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu on his victory in parliamentary elections in a phone call, said a German government spokesperson on Thursday.
Scholz stressed that Germany would remain a close partner to Israel and would continue to work for peace in the Middle East, the spokesperson added.
Reuters