© Xinhua
MIDEAST-JERUSALEM-ISRAEL-ELECTION-NETANYAHU
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) — Former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appears to be heading toward victory in national elections, with some 85% of the ballots counted and showing that voters gave him and his far-right allies what looks like a stable majority in the country’s parliament.
Votes were still being counted on Wednesday morning and results were not final. But Israel was likely headed to its most right-wing government, bolstered by a strong showing from the ultranationalist Religious Zionism party, whose members use inflammatory anti-Arab and anti-LGBTQ rhetoric.
The initial results pointed to a continued rightward shift in the Israeli electorate, further dimming hopes for peace with the Palestinians and setting the stage for possible conflict with the Biden administration.
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