Netanyahu open to 'broad' government formation after election setback but rules out Arab parties

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday said he was open to forming a “broad national government” under his leadership, even as his Likud party sought to delay the official certification of last week's election results over allegations of foreign interference. Netanyahu, however, indicated that any such arrangement would not mean dropping the far-right and ultra-Orthodox parties that were part of his outgoing coalition. The remarks marked a shift from his earlier position, when he had vowed to form a “strong, national, right-wing coalition” following the October 27 vote. “From the very first day, our hand has been extended to form a broad national government,” Netanyahu said in a post on X, adding that he wanted to lead the next government. He also ruled out depending on Arab parties Ra'am and the Joint List, accusing them of supporting terrorism and rejecting Israel's existence as a Jewish state. Likud emerged as the largest party with 27 seats but the pro-Netanyahu bloc secured only 53 seats in the 120-member Knesset, falling short of a majority. Arab-led parties won 19 seats, while other Jewish-led parties secured 48. All four Zionist opposition parties - Yashar, B'Yachad, The Democrats and Yisrael Beytenu - have ruled out joining a government led by Netanyahu. Meanwhile, Likud sought to delay the certification of the election results, scheduled for Wednesday, citing an ongoing probe into suspected foreign interference. However, Supreme Court Justice Noam Sohlberg, who chairs the Central Elections Committee, rejected the request, saying the panel had no authority to withhold certification or intervene in the investigation. The allegations centre on claims that Qatar or other foreign powers secretly funded efforts to boost Arab voter turnout. The claims remain unsubstantiated, and the election committee has said that even if proven, they would not be significant enough to change the outcome.