Israel faces second election after coalition talks fail

Israeli lawmakers dissolved the country’s parliament on Thursday and scheduled a new election after President Benjamin Netanyahu missed the midnight deadline to form a coalition government. The snap vote, scheduled for Sept. 17, marks a major setback for Netanyahu, who claimed victory in the April 9 election but failed to secure a majority. Negotiations for a unified government reached a stalemate after former Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman’s Yisrael Beiteinu party refused to join the coalition. Netanyahu was on track to become Israel’s longest-serving prime minister.

“He has dragged the country to unnecessary elections due to his own political ego,” Netanyahu said of Lieberman. “We will run a sharp and clear election campaign and we will win.”