Israel’s Likud Party leader Benjamin Netanyahu said on Wednesday he has managed to strike a deal to form a new Israeli government after several weeks of tough talks with the religious and ultra-right coalition partners.
"I did it (formed a government), he wrote on his Twitter account several minutes before the deadline set by Israeli President Isaac Herzog.
The presidential office confirmed that it has received a corresponding notification from the prime minister.
Earlier, Netanyahu asked the president to extend the 28-day term given to form a government for ten days more, until 01:00 Moscow time on December 22.
Netanyahu’s party won the early parliamentary elections on November 1 and on November 13 he was mandated by the president for form a cabinet. To form a balanced government, Netanyahu needed support from 61 out of 120 lawmakers. Apart from that, he has certain problems while distributing portfolios among his supporters. According to the Israel Hayom daily, Netanyahu met his fellow party members face-to-face. Likud is expected to have 17 ministerial portfolios in the new government.
