Israel's caretaker prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has again called for a national unity government with his rival Gadi Eisenkot, saying only such a coalition can guarantee the country's security, Al Jazeera reports. In a video on Saturday he invited Eisenkot to talks without preconditions and said a joint government could remove the Iranian threat. Eisenkot replied within minutes that Netanyahu knew he had lost the election and that his tricks would not work.
No bloc won a majority in the 27 October election: Netanyahu's camp took 53 of 120 seats, Eisenkot's 48 and Arab-led parties a record 19. President Isaac Herzog asked Eisenkot to form a government after 67 MPs backed him. Eisenkot, who has 28 days with a possible extension, is pursuing a minority emergency government that would rely on abstentions.
Source: Al Jazeera