Netanyahu promises a broad coalition after narrowly winning the Israeli election

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has pledged to form "as broad a government as possible" after his alliance won a narrow election victory. 

His right-wing Likud-Beitenu bloc will have 31 seats in parliament - a sharp drop from 42, exit polls suggest. 

In a major surprise, the centrist Yesh Atid (There is a Future) party came second with a predicted 18-19 seats, with Labour next on 17. 

Analysts now predict weeks of political horse-trading to form a new cabinet. 

[...] 

Speaking shortly after the voting ended on Tuesday, Mr Netanyahu thanked the voters "for the opportunity to lead the state of Israel for the third time" 

In an apparent reference to his electoral setback, the prime minister promised to reach out to "many partners" to form a wide coalition. 

"Tomorrow we start anew," he said. 

He also said that preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons remained the government's first challenge

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