With about 90% of votes counted, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s bloc (Likud, Shas, United Torah Judaism, Ben-Gvir’s Otzma Yehudit and Smotrich’s Religious Zionism) stands at 53 seats, eight short of the 61 needed for a majority in the 120-seat parliament.

The opposition bloc led by former army chief Gadi Eisenkot, architect of the “Dahiya doctrine” of flattening civilian areas in Lebanon, has only 48 seats. Likud remains the largest party with 26 seats, followed by Eisenkot’s Yashar party with 21. The joint list of former prime ministers Naftali Bennett and Yair Lapid managed just 12.

The surprise of the night was the Arab parties, which nearly doubled their result to 19 seats on high turnout among Palestinian citizens of Israel. On paper, they now hold the balance of power. In practice, both Netanyahu and Eisenkot refused to work with them before the vote.

Yair Golan, leader of the left-wing Democrats in Eisenkot’s camp, is now the only one in the bloc openly calling for a partnership with the Arab parties.

Israeli President Isaac Herzog is urging parties to avoid yet another election and reportedly favors a unity government, but Eisenkot has ruled out serving under Netanyahu. Official results are expected next week, after which Herzog will begin consultations. Until then, Netanyahu stays on as caretaker prime minister.

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