ISRAELI Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday intensified allegations of election fraud by Arab-led parties, describing suspected foreign interference as an “earthquake”, as the top electoral body asked the internal security agency to investigate the matter. In a social media post, Netanyahu cited Central Elections Committee chief Justice Noam Sohlberg’s decision to ask Shin Bet chief David Zini to investigate suspicions of foreign funding and improper influence in Tuesday’s election. “The Ra’amgate affair is an earthquake. They stole the elections in Israel!” the 77-year-old premier wrote, targeting the Arab-led Ra’am (the United Arab List) and the Joint List alliance. He alleged that foreign entities had interfered in Tuesday’s parliamentary elections and bribed voters in favour of Arab-led parties. The allegations come amid an inconclusive election in which neither Netanyahu’s bloc nor the opposition camp led by former military chief Gadi Eisenkot secured a majority in the Knesset, Israel’s Parliament. According to the latest partial count, Netanyahu’s bloc had 53 seats against 48 for Eisenkot’s camp, whileArab-led parties were projected to win 19 seats.

 

At least 61 seats are required for a majority in the 120-member Knesset. The Arab-led parties primarily represent Palestinian citizens of Israel, who account for about a fifth of the country’s population. Ra’am, led by Mansour Abbas, and the Joint List have been projected to hold a potentially influential position in Government formation. Ra’am had previously joined the coalition formed in 2021 under then-Prime Minister Naftali Bennettand Yair Lapid. That Government collapsed in 2022, resulting in another election.Meanwhile, PresidentIsaac Herzog on Thursday called for a thorough investigation into the allegations, while cautioning against casting suspicion on an entire community that had sought to exercise its right to vote. He said that he had spoken to Sohlberg and Zini and was closely following developments in the investigation. “The integrity of our elections is a supreme democratic value. The evidence and the allegations must be fully investigated, and those responsible must be arrested and held accountable according to the full extent of the law,” Herzog said. Herzog said he would meet representatives of all Knesset factions after receiving the official results and urged political leaders to consider what was best for the country during consultations on Government formation.