OCCUPIED AL-QUDS (Dispatches) -- Israel’s general election has ended in deadlock, acrimony and violence, with terrorist prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud-led bloc falling to 53 seats as vote counting continued Wednesday and opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot’s camp trailing at 48, according to partial results.
With 85 percent of ballots counted, neither bloc can command a 61-seat majority in the 120-seat Knesset. Palestinian parties surged to 19 seats — a historic high — but both Netanyahu and Eisenkot have refused to govern with them, leaving no obvious path to a coalition.
The election was marked by reports of violent attacks on voters. Ahmad Tibi, head of the Taal party, said regime-backed settlers were sabotaging Palestinian polling stations on Tuesday. 
Netanyahu had spent the final days of the campaign issuing alarmist warnings about “voter fraud” in Palestinian communities, urging Likud supporters to declare a state of emergency — claims that critics denounced as incitement.
Yair Golan, leader of the Democrats party and a member of the Eisenkot bloc, called on the opposition to partner with Palestinian parties. 
“Netanyahu lost. I know how to count to 120. 65 is more than 55,” he said. “We must no longer accept Netanyahu’s racist division between Jewish votes and Arab votes.”
Eisenkot’s bloc has so far shown no willingness to formally join forces with Palestinian parties, though Channel 12 reported Wednesday that it was exploring coordination with them to replace Knesset speaker Amir Ohana, a Likud member.
Behind the deadlock, a quieter maneuver is underway. The Washington Post reported before polls opened that Netanyahu could remain in power with U.S. backing even if he loses — by forming a regime with Eisenkot’s camp. Sources cited by the paper said Netanyahu’s camp is “pushing the idea vigorously” and has “a sympathetic ear” in President Donald Trump.
Netanyahu has privately told U.S. and European officials that if he joins forces with Eisenkot, he could abandon his current coalition partners, including far-right minister Itamar Ben Gvir. 
A Likud source dismissed Eisenkot as lacking “the backbone and the determination that Netanyahu has,” on continuing genocide and aggression. 
U.S. officials are reportedly divided. Some agree Netanyahu would be “more moderate” without Ben Gvir’s influence; others are “deeply distrustful,” citing “his track record of betraying allies to stay in power.”
If Eisenkot refuses a partnership, the Post reported, Netanyahu may exploit the deadlock to stay on as caretaker premier and force another election.
Trump publicly endorsed Netanyahu this month, praising him as “a great warrior prime minister and an even greater partner for peace” — rhetoric that, ironically, seems to suggest the opposite of what it says.
Netanyahu faces ongoing corruption proceedings, and his political survival is widely seen as intertwined with his legal fate. With no coalition in sight, the illegal entity of Israel now enters an uncertain period of negotiations — and, potentially, another trip to the polls.