Anti-Netanyahu parties secure 67 seats with over 85 pct of Israeli votes counted

JERUSALEM -- Parties opposed to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu secured 67 seats in the 120-member parliament after 85.6 percent of votes were counted in Tuesday's election, according to updated official results.

The Central Elections Committee said the results were based on the counting of most votes cast at regular polling stations. About half a million votes cast in double envelopes at polling stations in military bases, hospitals and other institutions have yet to be counted, with the count expected to be completed by Friday.

According to the recent count, Netanyahu's right-wing bloc won 53 seats, while the opposition secured 67, including 48 for former military chief Gadi Eisenkot's bloc and 19 for Arab parties.

Netanyahu's Likud party remained the largest single party with 26 seats, followed by Eisenkot's Yashar party with 21. The Joint List, an alliance of Arab-majority parties, and the center-right Together won 12 seats each, while the Arab-majority Ra'am party secured seven.

The Arab parties have called for a coalition with Eisenkot's bloc based on an unprecedented Jewish-Arab partnership, but ahead of the elections, Eisenkot has repeatedly ruled out governing with Arab parties or relying on their support, while Netanyahu has also rejected their participation in government.

Also on Wednesday, Israeli President Isaac Herzog said that every effort must be made to avoid another round of elections, after preliminary results showed neither of the main blocs had secured a majority in the parliament.