Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud party declared Thursday that Israel's election was "stolen" by Arab-majority parties with foreign funding, as final results showed his bloc had lost its majority in the Knesset.
Netanyahu's bloc won 53 of the Knesset's 120 seats, down from the 68 it held at its peak in the previous parliament. The main opposition bloc won 48 seats and Arab-led parties won 19, their highest-ever total, on record turnout among Arab voters in Tuesday's vote. Arab citizens make up about 20 per cent of Israel's population.
"Israel's elections have been stolen," Likud said in a statement, alleging an attack on democracy meant to bring about a foreign takeover of the Knesset, the Islamization of Israel and the overthrow of the right-wing government. CBC News reported that the party offered no evidence.
Likud stepped up its rhetoric after Supreme Court Justice Noam Sohlberg, who heads the Central Elections Committee, said "serious suspicions" of foreign interference had been brought before him. In a letter to the Shin Bet security agency, he said he could not verify them and asked the agency to investigate. The committee wants findings within the week.
Israeli media reported that one allegation under review is whether Qatar sent money to Arab parties to raise turnout. Qatar's foreign ministry denied it. "We categorically deny allegations that Qatar has interfered in Israeli elections or funded any activities intended to influence their outcome," ministry spokesperson Majid Al-Ansari said.
The Shin Bet said its inquiry is focused and bounded and does not cast blame on an entire sector of voters. The election committee's acting director general, named Din Livne by CBS and Dean Livne by CBC, said there is no basis to claims of systematic compromise of the vote's integrity and that the probe does not affect the final results.
President Isaac Herzog called it a "sensitive moment" and called for a full investigation, warning against tarnishing an entire community that sought to vote.
Gadi Eisenkot, head of the centrist Yashar party and the leading candidate to replace Netanyahu, said Likud was trying to delegitimize the results. "They are doing this because they lost," he said. He also said he feared the claims could be used to delay or disqualify the results.
Yair Golan, head of the Democrats party, accused Netanyahu of a delegitimization campaign against the public's will and the Arab public in particular. The Arab-led Joint List accused Netanyahu of working to steal the election. Ra'am leader Mansour Abbas welcomed the investigation, said his party had nothing to do with the case and accused Netanyahu of incitement.
The results must still be certified and submitted to Herzog next Wednesday, before a new parliament is sworn in and government formation begins. The four main opposition parties would need some Arab party support to form a coalition. Leaders of Israel's two biggest Arab parties have said they would help oust Netanyahu, but most Jewish-led opposition parties vowed before the vote not to rely on them. Eisenkot has said he is open, with conditions.
Netanyahu remains caretaker prime minister until a new government is formed. If no coalition emerges, Israel would face another election.
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