Buoyed by exit polls, Netanyahu begins talks to form coalition government in Israel

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Tuesday began talks with lawmakers to form a "strong" national coalition government led by him after the exit polls projected majority for his right-wing Likud Party in the country's unprecedented third parliamentary elections.

According to the exit polls published shortly after the voting ended on Monday, 70-year-old Netanyahu's Likud Party-led alliance will win 59 seats, just two short of the majority in the 120-member Parliament.

Netanyahu had the support of 60 members in the Knesset after the April 9 polls, the first out of the three within a year, but he could not manage to win just one more member to form a government.

Israelis voted on Monday for the third time in less than a year to break the deadlock on government formation, with the country's longest-serving premier Netanyahu fighting for his political survival amid indictments on graft charges, which he denies.

A beaming Netanyahu said he would meet with the other right-wing and religious parties later on Tuesday to discuss forming a "strong, national government for the state of Israel."
"Netanyahu does not have 61 votes to form a government," he said. "We will consider our path. We respect the word of the voters. We were, are and will remain obligated to the fate of the State of Israel."