{"id":"1793165847922-news-show_open","slug":"israel-election-deadlock","title":"Israel Election Deadlock","summary":"Netanyahu called the prospect of working with Arab parties to form a government “a disgrace and a shame.” Exit polls show neither his bloc nor the opposition led by Gadi Eisenkot is projected to reach the 61 Knesset seats needed for a majority, leaving Arab parties as potential kingmakers.","publishedAt":"2026-10-28T05:37:27.922Z","channel":{"id":"news","name":"Oncast News","language":"en"},"show":"Overnight","verification":{"status":"verified","leadVerdict":"TRUE","notes":"TRUE: Netanyahu called the prospect of working with Arab parties to form a government “a disgrace and a shame.” Exit polls show neither his bloc nor the opposition led by Gadi Eisenkot is projected to reach the 61 Knesset seats needed for a majority, leaving Arab parties as potential kingmakers.\nSource: [aljazeera.com](https://www.aljazeera.com/video/newsfeed/2026/10/28/netanyahu-coalition-with-arab-parties-would-be) and [aljazeera.com](https://www.aljazeera.co (https://x.com/AJEnglish/status/2115302104495509644)","claims":[{"verdict":"TRUE","summary":"Netanyahu called the prospect of working with Arab parties to form a government “a disgrace and a shame.” Exit polls show neither his bloc nor the opposition led by Gadi Eisenkot is projected to reach the 61 Knesset seats needed for a majority, leaving Arab parties as potential kingmakers.","sourceName":"[aljazeera.com](https://www.aljazeera.com/video/newsfeed/2026/10/28/netanyahu-coalition-with-arab-parties-would-be) and [aljazeera.com](https://www.aljazeera.co","sourceUrl":"https://x.com/AJEnglish/status/2115302104495509644","claim":"Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu has called the prospect of working with Arab parties to form a government ‘a disgrace and a shame’. Exit polls show neither his party nor the opposition are projected to secure the 61 Knesset seats needed for a majority. https://t.co/8HhBLlR0ft","author":"Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish)"}]},"sources":[{"url":"https://x.com/AJEnglish/status/2115302104495509644","name":"[aljazeera.com](https://www.aljazeera.com/video/newsfeed/2026/10/28/netanyahu-coalition-with-arab-parties-would-be) and [aljazeera.com](https://www.aljazeera.co","kind":"x","verdict":"TRUE","author":"Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish)"}],"url":"https://oncast.fm/story/1793165847922-news-show_open-israel-election-deadlock","listenUrl":"https://oncast.fm/c/news","attribution":{"publisher":"Oncast","site":"https://oncast.fm","url":"https://oncast.fm/story/1793165847922-news-show_open-israel-election-deadlock","cite":"Cite https://oncast.fm/story/1793165847922-news-show_open-israel-election-deadlock and the original source links. Fact-check by Oncast (oncast.fm)."},"hostsSaid":[{"host":"Brian","text":"It's 1:36 in the morning, and Israel's election just landed with no clear winner — and a fight already brewing over who gets to form a government."},{"host":"Bella","text":"Exit polls show neither Netanyahu's bloc nor Gadi Eisenkot's opposition has the 61 seats needed for a majority."},{"host":"Brian","text":"And Netanyahu is already drawing a line. He called the prospect of working with Arab parties to form a government, quote, 'a disgrace and a shame.'"},{"host":"Bella","text":"That's a real statement. Arab parties could be the kingmakers here, and he's ruling them out before the votes are even fully counted."},{"host":"Brian","text":"Which is a gamble. If Eisenkot's bloc is bigger, he gets first crack at forming a government — and he might be more willing to deal."},{"host":"Bella","text":"Reuters is reporting the election appears deadlocked."},{"host":"Brian","text":"So the man who's dominated Israeli politics for years could be on the outside looking in. And he's not going quietly."},{"host":"Bella","text":"Meanwhile, the State Department just updated travel advisories for 14 countries in the Middle East. Saudi Arabia and the UAE are now Level 3 — reconsider travel."},{"host":"Brian","text":"That's a significant shift. Egypt stays at Level 2, but the Gulf states getting bumped up tells you something about the temperature in the region right now."},{"host":"Bella","text":"And Iran's president is calling for Muslim nations to unite against what he calls US-Israeli aggression."},{"host":"Brian","text":"Right on schedule. The election results aren't even final, and Tehran's already using it to rally the region."},{"host":"Bella","text":"One analyst on X, Hussain Abdul-Hussain, says Iran sees the recent visits from Saudi, Turkey, and Pakistan as proof it's the center of the region — that others come to beg."},{"host":"Brian","text":"That's the framing Tehran wants. Whether it's true is another question. But the timing of this unity call, right as Israel's government hangs in the balance, is not an accident."},{"host":"Bella","text":"We'll be watching the vote count through the night. For now, the story is simple: Israel woke up to a political earthquake, and the aftershocks are already spreading."}]}