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Netanyahu’s Boxed In and Could Be Finished at Next Election

  • Israeli vote outcome seen similar to April’s party breakdown
  • Prime minister may again be at mercy of ally-turned-nemesis
Benjamin Netanyahu

Benjamin Netanyahu

Photographer: Kobi Wolf/Bloomberg
By

Time may be running out for Benjamin Netanyahu. An unprecedented loyalty oath suggests just how rocky his standing might be.

Weeks after becoming Israel’s longest-serving leader, Netanyahu seems no better positioned to form a government following the Sept. 17 election than he was after failing in May and calling a snap revote, opinion polls show. To prevent any defections within his Likud party, its entire election slate has been signed on to a written pledge to support only a Netanyahu-led government.