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Both blocs claim upper hand in crucial Israeli election | First Thing

28 October 2026 at 11:33

Benjamin Netanyahu vows to form new coalition while opposition bloc leader says result shows prime minister should step down. Plus, a scathing review of Elon Musk’s AI-generated version of The Odyssey

Good morning. Israel could be in for weeks of political haggling after exit polls and partial official results showed neither Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition nor the opposition bloc led by the former general Gadi Eisenkot had won enough seats to form a government.

With 70% of the vote, or 4m ballots, counted so far, the Netanyahu bloc had 54 seats, the Eisenkot-led Change bloc 47 seats, and the Palestinian parties 19 seats. Sixty-one seats are needed for a majority.

What have the two leaders said so far? Israel’s longest-serving prime minister vowed to assemble a coalition through agreements between his Likud party, far-right factions and Jewish religious parties. Eisenkot had said earlier in the evening that “people decided in favour of change” and Netanyahu should have “announced today his retirement from politics”.

What does the increase in the Palestinian bloc mean? The election was marked by a record participation by Israeli citizens of Palestinian origin, a discriminated minority that makes up about 20% of the country’s population. Julian Borger explains from Nazareth that Eisenkot will have to work with Arab-Israeli leaders to have a hope of governing. Millions of other Palestinians living under Israeli rule in the occupied West Bank and Gaza cannot vote.

Here is what we know about the declared results so far. Our live coverage continues on the website.

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© Photograph: Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images

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© Photograph: 34th Separate Marine Brigade "Borysfen"/Reuters

© Photograph: 34th Separate Marine Brigade "Borysfen"/Reuters

© Photograph: 34th Separate Marine Brigade "Borysfen"/Reuters

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© Photograph: Andrej Isaković/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Andrej Isaković/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Andrej Isaković/AFP/Getty Images

French authorities announce partial curfews as PM blames ‘ultra-left’ for exploiting protests – as it happened

This live blog is now closed.

French PM Lecornu says he has asked prefects to implement “a number of partial curfews” in certain “localised” urban areas to stop further disorder, which he attributes to “the extreme-left” and some criminal elements.

We will no doubt hear more on this from local authorities, as in the example of Marseille (10:32).

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© Photograph: Guillaume Saligot/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Guillaume Saligot/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Guillaume Saligot/AFP/Getty Images

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