A majority of the elected members of the next Israeli parliament over the past two days have thrown their weight behind incumbent prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu to continue in his role and form the next government.
Sixty-five of the 120 elected members of the next parliament recommended Netanyahu as the prime minister in their consultations with President Reuven Rivlin on Monday and Tuesday.
Rivlin is expected to announce on Wednesday that he is assigning Netanyahu the job of forming the country’s 21st government.
Netanyahu will then have 28 days to complete the task, and may be granted an extension of up to an additional 14 days.
The main challenge Netanyahu is expected to face is Yisrael Beitenu leader Avigdor Liberman’s insistence on legislation that would obligate ultra-Orthodox Jews to enlist in the army.
Read the article by Tamara Zieve in the Newcastle Herald and The Canberra Times.