Benny Gantz’s Blue & White alliance formally refused to join a coalition led by Benjamin Netanyahu, as Israel’s president began the formal process of forming the country’s next government.
President Reuven Rivlin began meeting political party leaders on Monday to hear their recommendation on who should form the next government.
He met representatives from Mr Netanyahu’s Likud party, as the largest faction in the new Knesset, before his meeting with Blue & White.
He will then hear from representatives of the nine other elected parties in the chamber, in order of largest to smallest, to hear their recommendations.
The results of last week’s general election mean the talks will be a formality, as Likud and its right-wing and religious allies won a 65-55 majority in the Knesset.
But coalition talks are not expected to be smooth, with leaders of the smaller parties demanding competing ministerial roles as the price for their support.
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