Israel's Netanyahu gives up effort to form new government

Record ID: 1437962

  • Title: Israel's Netanyahu gives up effort to form new government
  • Date: 21st October 2019
  • Summary: TEL AVIV, ISRAEL (FILE - SEPTEMBER 18, 2019) (REUTERS) ***WARNING: CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** BENNY GANTZ, ISRAELI EX-GENERAL AND HEAD OF BLUE AND WHITE PARTY, WALKING UP TO STAGE AND HUGGING PARTY LEADERS
  • Embargoed: 4th November 2019 18:46
  • Keywords: Israel elections Netanyahu Gantz forming of government majority coalition
  • Location: INTERNET/ JERUSALEM/ TEL AVIV, ISRAEL
  • City: INTERNET/ JERUSALEM/ TEL AVIV, ISRAEL
  • Country: Jerusalem
  • Topics: Government/Politics,Elections/Voting
  • Reuters ID: LVA005B21KIMF
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Benjamin Netanyahu gave up his effort to form a new government on Monday (October 21) after failing to secure a majority coalition, creating an opportunity for centrist rival Benny Gantz to replace Israel's longest serving prime minister.
    Netanyahu, who heads the right-wing Likud party, said he had been unable to form a government following an election in September, and was returning the mandate back to Israel's president, Reuven Rivlin. Rivlin said he intends to task Gantz with the job of putting together a new government.
    "In the past weeks, I made every effort to bring Benny Gantz to the negotiating table, every effort to establish a broad national government, every effort to avoid another election," Netanyahu said in a video published on his Facebook page.
    Gantz also has no clear path to a majority, and should he come up short, it would almost certainly lead to another general election, the third since April.
    Gantz's Blue and White party said in a statement it was "determined to form a liberal unity government."
    Netanyahu, in power for the past decade and 13 years in total, has seen his political strength wane as he faces a looming indictment on corruption allegations he denies. Gantz, a former military chief, has pledged not to serve in a government under a premier facing criminal charges.
    Likud placed second in the September ballot with 32 seats in the 120-member parliament, behind 33 for Blue and White.
    (Production: Suheir Sheikh, Lianne Back)
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