Israel’s parliament votes on Wednesday to dissolve itself in a fresh bid to break political deadlock
Israel is set to hold a third round of elections within 12 months, after a deadline to form a government passed with no politician able to bring together the disparate parties.
A time limit to forge a majority coalition in the country’s parliament, the Knesset, expired at midnight on Wednesday, automatically triggering a fresh national ballot.
Continue reading...Israeli opposition parties scramble to find legal channels to strip weakened PM of power
Benjamin Netanyahu’s political opponents have moved to capitalise on a series of damning bribery indictments levelled against the Israeli leader, hoping to further weaken him at one of the lowest points in his decades-long career.
The opposition Labor party was expected to file petitions to the high court of justice to force the country’s longest-serving prime minister to step down.
Continue reading...The Israeli prime minister said he would not resign despite being charged with bribery, fraud and breach of trust in a corruption scandal that he denounced as an 'attempted coup'. Netanyahu was indicted for bribery, fraud and breach of trust on 21 November – the first time a sitting Israeli prime minister has been charged with a crime
Continue reading...Attorney general announces charges as crisis deepens for longest-serving leader
Israel’s attorney general has indicted Benjamin Netanyahu for bribery, fraud and breach of trust, in a damning blow to the prime minister as he fights for his political survival.
Avichai Mandelblit charged the 70-year-old leader on Thursday in all three major corruption cases for which he was investigated. It was the first time a sitting Israeli prime minister has been charged with a crime.
Continue reading...Benny Gantz’s lack of success pushes country closer to third round of elections in a year
Israel’s opposition leader, Benny Gantz, has failed to form a government, increasing the likelihood of the country holding an unprecedented third round of elections.
Gantz had close to a month to forge a coalition after the prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, failed to do so. Neither leader won a clear majority during a September election and both have sought to stall each other’s play for power.
Continue reading...The secretary of state’s announcement that the US no longer considers Israeli settlements on occupied Palestinian land to be illegal is appalling. It is also the dismal culmination of the Trump administration’s record.
Washington has done all it can to aid Israel’s rightwing government, punish Palestinians and bury the two-state solution: moving its embassy to Jerusalem, ending funding to the UN Palestinian refugee agency, and recognising Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights.
Continue reading...US said on Monday Israeli settlements on West Bank were no longer considered illegal
Jordan has accused the US of entrenching the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories, after Washington announced it did not consider Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank to necessarily be illegal.
Ayman Safadi, the Jordanian foreign minister, criticised the US decision, saying settlements “kill the two-state solution”, the most widely accepted blueprint for Middle East peace.
“Entrenching the occupation and its injustice, and violating the resolutions of international legitimacy will not achieve peace, and will not guarantee security and stability,” he said, according to state media.
“Nothing changes the illegal reality of settlements that the international community is unanimous in condemning,” he added.
Declaration marks rejection of 2016 UN resolution that settlements on the West Bank are a ‘flagrant violation’ of international law
The US has declared that Israeli settlements on occupied Palestinian land are not necessarily illegal, in a dramatic break with decades of international law, US policy and the established position of most US allies.
“Calling the establishment of civilian settlements inconsistent with international law has not advanced the cause of peace,” said Mike Pompeo, the US secretary of state. “The hard truth is that there will never be a judicial resolution to the conflict, and arguments about who is right and who is wrong as a matter of international law will not bring peace.”
Continue reading...Ex-military chief expected to have 28 days to forge coalition and avoid third election in year
Israel’s president is expected to task the former military chief Benny Gantz with forming a government after Benjamin Netanyahu failed to do so following an inconclusive election last month.
Neither Gantz’s Blue and White coalition nor the incumbent prime minister’s Likud party came out with a clear win, and few expect the opposition leader to form a coalition through deals with disparate political parties with ease.
Continue reading...Opposition leader Benny Gantz will have 28 days to build coalition or risk fresh election
Benjamin Netanyahu has informed Israel’s president he has been unable to form a coalition government after talks with his political rival Benny Gantz broke down.
In a video statement published on Monday evening – the day of his 70th birthday – Netanyahu said he and his Likud party had worked “incessantly” to forge a “broad national unity government” with Gantz’s Blue and White party, but ultimately failed.
Continue reading...Leader also fighting to save political career after failing to secure election wins this year
Defence lawyers representing Benjamin Netanyahu have presented their arguments against looming bribery, fraud and breach of trust indictments as a long-awaited pre-trial hearing begins.
Wednesday’s closed-door hearing, the culmination of three years of investigations, arrives at an especially fraught time for Israel’s longest-serving leader. Netanyahu is also fighting for his political life after failing to secure a clear win in two elections this year.
Continue reading...Prime minister had potentially up to six weeks to form coalition but negotiations with the opposition stalled just days in
Benjamin Netanyahu could inform Israel’s president that he is unable to form a government as early as this week after unity talks with rival politicians broke down at the weekend, his Likud party said.
Israel has entered a period of political paralysis after an inconclusive election on 17 September. Neither Likud nor the opposition Blue and White party, led by ex-military general Benny Gantz, won a clear lead.
Continue reading...Reuven Rivlin frustrated after talks between ruling party and opposition stall
Israel’s president has tasked Benjamin Netanyahu with forming a coalition government, throwing a lifeline to the incumbent prime minister after an inconclusive election threatened to end his political career.
Reuven Rivlin’s offer does not guarantee Netanyahu will lead Israel’s next administration. Before that can happen, Netanyahu has up to six weeks to forge a majority coalition in Israel’s parliament.
Continue reading...Joint List alliance endorse ex-military chief although say they don’t support his policies
Israeli Arab political parties have broken with longstanding precedent and endorsed the ex-military chief Benny Gantz for prime minister, in a bid to prevent the incumbent, Benjamin Netanyahu, from forming the next government.
The dramatic move came after the mainly Arab Joint List alliance won 13 seats in Tuesday’s polls, making the bloc the third-largest force in the 120-seat parliament.
Continue reading...Israel’s president is set to begin two days of consultations with political parties after a deadlocked election last week plunged the country into uncertainty over who will lead the next government.
Near-final results from Tuesday’s poll showed the opposition chief, Benny Gantz, marginally ahead of the prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, with his Blue and White party taking 33 seats out of parliament’s 120. The ruling Likud party has 31.
Continue reading...Blue and White leader rejects offer to serve under Likud after close-run Israeli election
Benjamin Netanyahu is furiously manoeuvring to cling to office after his rival Benny Gantz refused to serve under him in a government of national unity following an inconclusive election.
Gantz’s Blue and White alliance is two seats ahead of the Israeli prime minister’s Likud party, according to results published by Israeli media with 97% of the vote counted.
Continue reading...The Israeli prime minister has called on his main rival, the former general Benny Gantz, to join him in a broad, governing coalition after Israel's election ended with no clear winner. The change of strategy reflected the weakened position of Benjamin Netanyahu after he failed again in Tuesday's election, which followed an inconclusive ballot in April, to secure a parliamentary majority. Gantz is yet to respond
Continue reading...Prime minister cancels trip to UN general assembly to deal with political crisis
Benjamin Netanyahu and the opposition leader, Benny Gantz, have begun what could be a prolonged period of high-stakes political bartering after an inconclusive election in Israel showed neither had a clear path to form a coalition.
Many Israelis hoped the poll, the second in five months, would provide clarity and pull the nation out of a political crisis. But the muddy results that trickled in on Wednesday appeared to deadlock the country instead.
Continue reading...Five possible scenarios for rivals Benny Gantz and Benjamin Netanyahu
Israelis have voted in a second election that has left the country in a political stalemate.
In the coming days, the president will consult party leaders before choosing the person he believes has the best chance of putting together a coalition.
Continue reading...Benjamin Netanyahu’s warnings that Arab parties would topple him may have backfired
It’s become a tired trope of Benjamin Netanyahu’s election campaigns: as the country draws closer to election day the leader ramps up his racist scaremongering suggesting Israel’s Arab minority are preparing to vote en masse.
Infamously in 2015 he said Arabs were “voting in droves”. This year the prime minister almost lost his voice on Tuesday as he shouted through a megaphone to his base. His political rivals in the Arab parties, he screamed, would gather enough parliamentary seats to topple him. “So go and vote!”
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