benjamin netanyahu fantasising, benny gantz. benjamin neta nyahu is a fantasising, benny gantz.in israeli politics and any politician who comes close to beating him has already had, a major victory tonight. what is also interesting is that benjamin netanyahu has, it will bea that benjamin netanyahu has, it will be a question of whether he finds the next government and if he doesn't, what will happen with benjamin netanyahu? we have not mentioned that, if he has not tap into it, he may have trouble with and his party keeping things together because there have been a lot of people who are waiting more than ten years to find new blood and the party so that is something that is interesting that came out tonight as well. notjust in his party, the corruption indictments which are pending, it is cases that the attorney—general has filed and he said of course that if the prime minister called an early election eight months early so he could try to beat the attorney—general to win a new mandate before the trade were announced by the attorney—general preempted him but he cloud is hanging

gantz, mr. gantz's only strength may be harsh and i apologize, this is the way i see it. mr. gantz only strength is bebe weaknesses. he failed so far to impress large sectors of the israeli public opinion. he doesn't present a detailed agenda. and he's escaping all the time towards generalities and then you are at difficulty to find exactly what the difference between the policies that he's offering and the policies that bebe is pursuing. and the main drive for the blue-white party led by gantz is that disgust that many israelis feel toward their prime minister because of all the charges and the stories and whatever is being printed daily in the media. the timeline is july. there will be a hearing where bebe's lawyers will be given the opportunity to present to the attorney general their reservations concerning the draft indictment and the attorney general who used to work for bebe for years secretary in his government. very closely with bebe will have to decide whether he has to change some of the three indictments presented so far. bibi's plan is to look at the close electi

both netanyahu and gantz are claiming victory.hat does each candidate have working for him and against him at this stage? gil: if you need proof that this race is too close to call is this claim of victory by both candidates. one of the interesting things is the moment they are not passing the threshold. if we speak tomorrow morning, for gantz, there's two things working for him. the evidence and recordings of netanyahu's alleged corruption will be published in the next couple weeks, which might contribute to a specific climate supporting gantz. brent: are there indictments against him on corruption charges? gil: right. one of them on bribery and other ones. but they were held off because of the election but now they will be out in the open. the second issue, much more indicative, when we define the so-called blocs we have to take into account that they were created late -- based on the assumptions we have a classic left versus right, but that is not what we have here. we have right versus center. it means gantz has more flexibili

not a done deal for gantz yet. remember, he is the guy never held elected office and not a politician, not a member of -- not a government minister. he's inexperienced as a politician but if these polls hold, it will suggest that the indictment, the exhaustion factor and the fatigue factor with netanyahu finally went out and that four consecutive terms may be one too many. >> what about to orren's point and we've seen the great big pictures on the side of buildings is in israel with trump shaking netanyahu's hand and openly basically campaigning for him. do you think that will help or hurt. >> the three times the united states has tried to intercede in israeli elections and i was around for those once under a democrat and republican president and we failed twice and this shows that tip o'neill was right, all politics are inherently local. this was a critical decision for the people of israel to make. the parliament structure to make and apparently they've created not only a bed headline for mr. netanyahu but maybe

prime minister benjamin netanyahu will remain in office for a fifth term his main challenger benny gantz the country to embrace a new dawn when he voted in tel aviv previous opinion polls have showed a tight race between guns his centrist new and white party and netanyahu the right wing likud party. let's go now to hurry for cities lie for us from ben netanyahu could party headquarters in tel aviv and harry expecting exit polls anytime no. that's right you know we're getting some initial reports of the exit polls but we're not yet confident enough to to declare them but it does seem that it is very close and the closer it is the better news that is for benjamin netanyahu he has been. really frenetically going out around the country on his social media throughout the day trying to warn his likud supporters that there is a real danger of his right wing government being overtaken of fulling to the efforts of blue and white and benny gantz saying that it is a major. crisis in terms of complacency among the could voters and so he's been on beaches telling people to get out of the water and go

voters return into office on tuesday he's running neck and neck with former army chief of staff benny gantz will a sudden pledge sway voters also coming up in the bundesliga byron munich crushed their nearest rivals the variance put five unanswered goals past the recent dortmund to go to the top of the table tired are now posed to seize their seventh straight time. on next peiser welcome to the program israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu has vowed to annex jewish settlements in the occupied west bank if he's reelected next week netanyahu has promoted jewish settlement expansion during his four terms as prime minister but until now he's refrained from presenting plans for the future of the west bank settlements which are considered illegal under international law netanyahu is locked in a tight race for the premiership with former army general benny gantz. there is only b.b. they shout for binyamin netanyahu is followers he's the greatest unique and irreplaceable even if he isn't campaigning alongside his followers on the streets of israel he's always campaigning alongside his powerful

well now that benny gantz has actually conceded defeat in the ten yeah. first of all we have to wait for the final results today was a day where the votes of the soldiers diplomats medical staff people in the hospitals were counted to more probably we would get the final results then you have the weekend and coming next week you the president rivlin will start consultation he will first meet with all the leaders of the different political parties they will recommend to him a think should be the prime minister of israel and that the end he will meet with benjamin netanyahu benjamin netanyahu will then have twenty eight days to form that government twenty eight days period can be renewed by another fifteen days in case he doesn't manage to then the president will have to someone else but that is very unlikely as older numbers show so far that he does have benjamin netanyahu does have the numbers to form a coalition and to be again prime minister of israel will it change the tone of what goes on in the knesset though because benny gantz go you know thirty th

excitement among backers of benny gantz when exit polls came through.hese have to be treated with caution. here among mr netanyahu's supporters, there is still high hope that he will stay in power with help from smaller right—wing parties. this vote has been a referendum on his leadership and has shown a country that's deeply split. yolande knell, bbc news, tel aviv. we will have more on those israeli elections on the programme. also making news today, robert mueller‘s report into russian interference in the 2016 us election will be made public within a week. us attorney general william barr told a congressional committee that he plans to release a redacted version of the report. a four—page note summarising its conclusions was released last month, sparking demands for the report to be released in its entirety. new protests have broken out in algeria after an interim head of state was appointed to replace president abdelaziz bouteflika, who was forced to resign last week. abdelkader bensalah is set to become the new leader but it's an unpopular choice w

also claiming victory, benny gantz, leader of the centrist blue and white party. he says he will form the next israeli government. britain's prime minister meets germany's chancellor to discuss a short delay to brexit. there are signs the eu favours a longer extension, which could mean more trouble for mrs may. still awaiting more details from the mueller report. the us attorney general says he will let congress and the public see a redacted version within a week. no pause in the protests in algeria, as a new interim president is sworn in. votes are being counted in israel's general election. exit polls suggest the blue and white alliance of challenger benny gantz is neck—and—neck with prime minister benjamin netanyahu's likud party. one exit poll by israel tv has likud winning 36 seats in the knesset, blue and white on 37, and labour coming next with eight seats. but, with 61 seats needed for a majority, coalitions with smaller parties are the norm in israel, and it is far too soon to predict who will come out on top. the bbc‘s yolande knell sent this report from

benny gantz is claiming victory. his rival benny gantz is also claiming victory at this hour. folks, this is certainly very interesting at the moment. too close to call, let's call it that. netanyahu leads the right wing bloc of likud and of course, benny gantz leads the white and blue party which is more centrist. but he is no dove here. he is a general and he had the highest rank of all people in the israeli defense forces. to game how this election might go down and it does matter to the united states, we bring in former national security adviser john hannah who served vice president dick cheney here in a fox business exclusive. both are claiming victory at this hour? too close to call. you've got to tell us how you see it at this moment. >> i think you're right, it is clearly too close to call. but the fact is that israel is now a center right to right wing country and the big issue is who can form a government after the elections settle and i think the betting is still that prime minister netanyahu and likud with smaller parties to their right is going to have that best c

so we heard from benny gantz when claiming victory. but yet the final results are still not out so yet claim victory benjamin netanyahu also famed victory it could be a little premature we're just going to have to wait for the final results and probably those the king makers here are going to be told the attention rather would be just smaller parties just who would be able to go through that minimal threshold to enter the knesset the israeli parliament and those who would fall behind and then also you have the soldiers voters oppose that have to be counted and that will could make also a huge difference here pot benny gantz was standing on the stage behind me less than an hour ago next to him is kosher. feed and then did two other military and what part of this list are most lonely gabby ask him as a good clear victory but he also need to make it his message that his will be a a list or a government in case he gets that that will bridge to the visions that israelis have told against these divisions now and it's time to move forward you

benny gantz a former army chief of staff has a chance of replacing him as prime minister. yet. the citizens of israel will have a prime minister who cares about their interests. not his own personal business. but in the name. clean handed yet tough on security that's how cancer presents himself and people are listening. he's a change for a new future for israel. the polls predict a close result. earlier i spoke to correspondent correspondent benjamin hammer and asked him how the pledge to an excel ments by netanyahu might affect the election but one thing is for sure this is raising the tension in an already tense situation and almost everybody in israel agrees that this is a tactical move when he was so close to the elections he's done this before he's doing it now and he's clearly aiming for right wing voters who could vote otherwise for other right wing parties polls show that the center right parties are probably going to be able to form a government but the polls at the same time show that netanyahu is likud might not be the strongest party the strongest party according to

of claim victory exit polls show that prime minister benjamin netanyahu and opposition leader benny gantz are neck and neck netanyahu is trying to remain in office for his main rival gun surge the country to embrace a new dawn when he calls his ballot in tel aviv all the channel twelve preliminary exit poll shows that prime minister benjamin netanyahu is likud party has thirty three seats and many guns his blue and white coalition policy has thirty seven seats let's join of course one hundred i go home and who is at the headquarters of pentagon says blue and white. it's all connect to tight to cool too close to call it what suits the scene like there looks pretty quiet behind you. but actually what you see just behind me is actually the judus below that this is actually quite a crowd of people cheering they've been killed and many didn't even figure out this why and the list will be afeared here very soon as you said. yeah who have declared victory even though it's really not set in stone either for everything the final result has still nice house and really old attention now to this mall

but his main rival, benny gantz, declared victory himself after polls closed.s, mr netanyahu is also due to hear details of corruption charges, which he denies. the bbc‘s yolande knell sent this report from tel aviv. at the end of the voting came the first predictions, this poll giving political newcomer benny gantz a narrow lead over the prime minister. but both men have now claimed victory. translation: the largest party is the one that needs to be mandated by the president and form the government. translation: i want to thank you, from the bottom of my heart. you have brought an amazing, almost inconceivable achievement. it is an almost unimaginable achievement, in the face of hostile media, and the likud has actually grown dramatically. benjamin netanyahu, who has corruption charges looming, has been fighting a tough campaign to win a fifth term in office. his rival has gained popular support, with his strong military record and promise of change. some in israel vote along religious lines, others on key issues like security. in this poll, there were more th

another tantalising possibility, benny gantz, and benjamin netanyahu, possibility, benny gantz, and benjaminy, benny gantz, and benjamin netanyahu, they could form a unity government. possible? they could be more surprises but it's unlikely. the high street chain debenhams has been taken over by its lenders after the chain went into administration today. the company rejected a rescue attempt by mike ashley's sports direct. debenhams' stores are continuing to trade as normal for now, although 50 branches have already been marked for closure. our business correspondent emma simpson is in london's oxford street. debenhams fell into administration but was then immediately sold to its lenders in a prearranged sale, meaning tonight this chain is in the hands of its banks and us hedge funds. this is an important business. it has 166 stores across the uk, more than 25,000 workers, and last year it racked up sales of nearly £3 billion a year. but it has been struggling to make a profit. it has too high a rent bill and too few customers and way too much debt it couldn't afford. we have had this extrao

the possibility of a national unity government between likud and blue and white list between benny gantz and netanya o. that ensures if not the neo does get indicted and cannot serve as prime minister that certainly in the first parts of whatever the national unity government arrangement is that bennett guns will be the prime minister so i think national unity government now for me judging from the from the exit polls is a real possibility between late cood and blue and white lists ok tell us is that more mo at a the role of the smaller parties and why that's critical and what's transpired is here and how voter turnout especially among arab israelis has relevance well in terms of out of israelis it's really very difficult to judge now what happened because palestinians in israel apparently went in massive way bit in the last two hours before before the ballots closed so we don't know exactly the final i've seen channel twelve say that one party or one coalition will get six of the other coalition would get six and the last election two thousand and fifteen together they got thirteen if t

who is locked in a tight race for the premiership with former army general benny gantz. there is only bibi they shout for binyamin netanyahu is followed was he's the greatest unique and irreplaceable even if he's not alongside his followers on the streets of israel he's been campaigning nonstop alongside his supporters in washington d.c. online and on t.v. his latest campaign promise. i will extend the sovereignty of israel to the settlements i won't hand this land over to the palestinian authority. he's talking about a partial an extension of the west bank music to the ears of right wing voters and netanyahu is coalition partners the opposition calls the pledge irresponsible they say netanyahu is desperate he's been dogged by scandals and accusations of corruption and now on security the most important issue in israel netanyahu is facing stiff competition. benny gantz a former army chief of staff has a chance of replacing him as prime minister. the citizens of israel will have a prime minister who cares about their interests. not his own personal business. but in the na

coalition but across town in tel aviv there had already been another declaration of victory benny gantz israel's former army chief and leader of the blue and white party put together in essence to remove netanyahu from power said he should be given the opportunity to do just that if you want to serve in the winners and losers in elections but we have to win as we might be new but we're not naive we understand we've got to wait for the true results but within a few days will work to calm a government as big as possible but it's up to israel's president ruben rivlin to invite the most likely prime minister to form a coalition balancing two factors who leads the biggest party and who has the clearest path to a governing bloc for netanyahu that's complicated by a couple of his natural allies such as his education ministers under threat new right to party hovering around the threshold for a place in the israeli parliament or knesset for a time palestinian israeli parties warning their voters that low turnout could threaten their presence in the knesset as well they complained of intimidation

excitement among backers of benny gantz when exit polls came through.these have to be treated with caution. likud headquarters were less crowded but the mood was positive. here among mr netanyahu's supporters, there's still high hope that he'll stay in power with help from smaller right—wing parties. this vote has been a referendum on his leadership and has shown a country that's deeply split. yolande knell, bbc news, tel aviv. and you can keep up to date with the election results as they come in, by going to the bbc website. you'll also find profiles of the main candidates — and a guide to ‘key things to know about israel's election system. that's all at bbc.com/news. you can also download the bbc news app. also making news today, robert mueller‘s report into russian interference in the 2016 us election will be made public within a week. us attorney general william barr told a congressional committee that he plans to release a redacted version of the report. a four—page note summarising its conclusions was released last month, sparking demands for the

jonathan hunt is at the gantz headquarters.trey yingst who is leave at netanyahu headquarters. trey? >> shep, we just got word that benjamin netanyahu is going to come and rally his supporters while he declares victory in tel aviv. we understand his opponent, benny gantz is also declaring victory. when you look at the popular vote, two out of three polls indicate benny gantz has won. when you look at the top line numbers, two out of three israeli channels say prime minister netanyahu will have a clear advantage at 66 to 54 seats. the magic number for both candidates is 61. they're going to be looking to try to form a government over the next 42 days. they'll be given that opportunity. if they are able to do so, they will be given the nod by the israeli president to form the government. shep, i'm getting a note from my producer. i want to read it live. the prime minister has made one call tonight following the exit poll announcements to a smaller religious party and they have agreed to side with him. that shows you, shep, the ur

polls show benny gantz with a slight lead, but mr. might have the edge when it comes to building a coalition. >> gantz thrived to rev up last-minute support on sunday. you see him there on the streets with a motorcycle. mr. netanyahu also using a last-minute tactic as well. he announced on saturday that he will be annexing the west bank settlements if he gets re-elected. let's go live to jerusalem. our michael holmes is on the story. michael, help explain the difference here between winning the role of prime minister, but also being able to build an effective coalition. >> reporter: yeah, it's a complicated system here, george, and it's worth sort of going back to basics in a way. you can't become prime minister in israel without a coalition. no major party's going to get enough votes for that. to form a government, a candidate's got to get 61 seats in the knesset, but that takes coalition-building. now for netanyahu's likud party and his chief opponent benny gantz in the blue and white party, that means courting enough of the other s

results are not yet instance both of the main parties those of netanyahu and former general benny gantz have won an equal number of seats in parliament though hasn't stopped netanyahu from declaring himself the mixer. this is a night of tremendous victory i was very moved that the nation of israel once again and trusted me for the fifth time already tonight i have started talks with the heads of the right wing parties our natural partners i intend to be the prime minister of all israeli citizens right or left jews and non jews alike all israeli citizens. it really would need something outrageous to happen for him not to be able to form this coalition he's likely to get sixty five seats out of a parliament comprising of one hundred twenty so that gives him a better majority than he had in the previous parliament where he stood with sixty one this will mean that his back will be less against the war he'll be able to perhaps move a little more clearly and not be choked by those in his coalition who are putting demands on him that he perhaps doesn't want to go to the election is largely see

very inconclusive from these three exit polls so far one of them does give the blue my party benny gantz a four seat lead thirty seven to thirty three in the knesset the other two main ones have it much closer thirty six to thirty seven in favor of dance one house than tied entirely and two out of three of those polls give the the right wing bloc in israeli politics a pretty clear lead over benny gantz and his party and that the kinds of parties that would be able to form a coalition in opposition to. the could and his natural right wing allies so there are still many questions unanswered though because we don't yet know which of the smaller parties which are have been hovering around the at the threshold of the share of the vote three point two five percent. it is necessary for any party to make it into the israeli knesset the parliament and until we get clear a cut results on those questions we don't know exactly what the composition is likely to be both of them are declaring victory there are palestinian israeli parties as well that could be very crucial in all of this the turnout in

prime minister of the heart of the campaign has been the contest with his former army chief benny gantz out in force at reports from western. which of these men do israelis want as their prime minister for all the myriad parties and themes to loomed over this campaign the real fight remains benjamin netanyahu versus benny gantz israel has never had a better friend than you for israel's prime minister the strategy has been clear portray himself as the only politician capable of playing in the big league keeping israel safe and scoring wins such as last week's u.s. indorsement it was really sovereignty over the occupied golan heights like his friend in the white house he's gone on the attack against the media and the legal establishment whose investigation into lavish gifts and alleged media manipulation he calls a witch hunt nonetheless in the middle of the campaign his attorney general decided enough real witches were found to recommend indictment for bribery fraud and breach of trust which netanyahu denies it remained an issue for a few days on the agenda and then and then the agenda w

summit also on the program israelis are voting in a closely contested election political newcomer benny gantz a centrist and a former general is mounting a stiff challenge to fulfill prime minister binyamin netanyahu and his right wing the koch body we talked to our correspondent in jerusalem. and guilty verdicts for the defined leaders of the pro-democracy demonstrations in hong kong during a peaceful movement the socal a brutal movement to shut down the city for months in a battle political rights and greater autonomy from beijing. britain's prime minister to resign pleading her case for two of europe's key power brokers hoping to gain the support for yet another extension to beg beyond friday's deadline. stopped to see german chancellor angela merkel as with other aspects of beggs it didn't go as planned me arrive just ahead of schedule and method wasn't there to welcome it was only after me went inside that good leaders came back for the customary handshakes for cameras waiting to film that amazed visit comes before a stop in paris to meet present a man in the pool and ahead of the specia

benny gantz and nothing more than that posters project that netanyahu may have more opportunities than the center left to form a coalition with other smaller parties on the right. all right let's get you latest now with merriam to god she joins me now from jerusalem very good to see you what's the voter turnout so far. the turnout so far the last numbers that i saw or heard about were around thirty six percent since the voting booths close to ten pm they're expected of course to rise and the general voter turnout in israel is very high around seventy percent one interesting thing arab or palestinian citizens turnout so far has been much lower or much lower than in the last elections at around twenty percent so far and there are various reasons for that but one thing is for certain the arab vote is very important in israel because it will also make a big difference to which party center the knesset the israeli parliament how many mandates they'll have and what coalition building options the winning party will have to marry him and netanyahu is of course hoping to secure a record fifth t

he ran a tight race against his centrist challenger, former military chief benny gantz. netanyahu celebrated his victorr with suppotoday in tel aviv. he'll now become israel's longest-serving lead we'll have more on the israeli election rig after the news summary. british prime minister theresa may was in brussels today, lobbying for another extension on the u.k. departure date from the european union.e ld top e.u. officials another delay would give her mo time to secure a brexit deal that could pass in parliament. e.u. member states held an emergency session to vote on whether or not to grana second extension. without one, the u.k. is set to leave the bloc friday without a deal. we'll have more on the pivotal vote later in the ogram. new zealand's parliament has voted to ban most semi-automatic weapons and assault rifles. that comes less than a month after a gunman opened fire on two mosques in christchurch, killing 50 people and wounding dozens more. today, prime minister jacinda ardern praised the nearly unanimous vote in wellington. >> i could not fathom how weapons

will it be benny gantz or will it be benjamin netanyahu gantz or will it be benjamin neta nyahu withnetanyahu with the largest number of seats with a blue and white alliance and who stands the better chance of cobbling together all those small parties which are running in order to form a governing coalition. it's very much a 2— part process. security is a major issue but there's been very little debate about how to achieve a lasting peace with the palestinians. yolande knell reports. violence and conflict are neverfar away in israel. that's why elections here are fought and won on security. i could hear the whoosh, and then boom, up went the explosive. robert wolff's family home was destroyed two weeks ago by a powerful rocket fired by palestinian militants in gaza. nobody was killed, but his baby granddaughter was among those hurt. we're a very lucky family. we're all alive, we're all here, we're not — you know, there could have been seven graves up the road. we need a leader who's brave enough to bring peace. in a close campaign, waged with social media videos, benjamin netanyahu a

benny gantz. and nothing more than that pollsters project that netanyahu may have more opportunities than the center left clark to form a coalition with other smaller parties on the right. that. joins me from jerusalem welcome john nash is a voting coming along was a turn out like so far. well we got some new figures from the central election committee and they're saying the vote to turn out stands at around twenty five percent and noontime that's about the same a little bit less than in two thousand and fifteen the last elections when the overall turnout was about seventy two percent at the end of the day now as i said in the report as well i mean it's a day off for his great. courage still to go out and vote and then it's a long waiting period until about twenty two hundred when the first exit polls are going to be published and ten netanyahu is hoping for a record fifth but his challenger the full genuine army chief benny gantz has been leading in pre-election surveys according to report how di

israelis are voting in a closely contested elections political newcomer benny gantz a centrist and a fluid general is mounting a stiff challenge to floor time prime minister binyamin netanyahu and his right wing likud party. and the friggin journalists across the syrian border to film a friend who joined a jihad a school johnny duff and elizabeth was kidnapped to give birth in captivity she tells us her story a four year held in detention by extreme. i don't know of a warm welcome to you i'm on the chiba british from mr tourism a has just arrived in berlin to meet chancellor angle of machall she is expected to meet the french president in london mccraw in paris later in the afternoon she's on a mission to secure french and german backing for yet another brics extension on the eve of four key e.u. summit may once the e.u. to extend the deadline for the u.k. has been drawn to june the thirtieth as it stands now the u.k. is due to leave the e.u. within without a deal at the end of this week. for weeks the british parliament has been the scene of chaotic debates with prime minister terro

well they would certainly say there's a difference benny gantz is if people say this is a referendumon the netanyahu ten years in power this project this moonlight project is very much a pragmatic vehicle to try to get netanyahu out of power for the reason they say that his his style his his way of doing things the corruption that his is come to dog his last few years in office is something that israel is tired of and needs rid of and yes they do offer some different sort of aspects on issues such as the israeli palestinian conflict but no one's really talking about that in any great sense in this election very much their what their message is one that yes if there would be the chance of some kind of globally a regional supported peace agreement in the future they would work towards that but they're not talking about a two state solution just as us and you know who is and what benny gantz is saying today is very similar in some ways to what age netanyahu saying he accepts that blue and white are ahead but he says by not enough and that the only route towards power for blue and white

gantz has said over and over again the public doesn't believe gantz but according to the polls he won't join to benjamin netanyhau because if there is a hearing which is supposed to be in july and a formal indictment he will be the first to jump ship. these are people who united against the referendum on benjamin netanyhau, are they going to prop him up. i happen to think he handles this sequentially which goes like this. i would like to lock in the right first and foremost which is the way i have done it in every other election. i want to lock in my base and he is certainly under pressure. he won't be able to totally trust the right, these people hate him. he knows that and they know he knows that they know but the point is that if he can lock in this i think it would be good for him but he doesn't want -- who is to his right and he doesn't trust tenant at all. what about a sequential approach which says i have my base i can't fully trust them but i will leave open the defense ministry i mean the foreign ministry. the door is open down the road which is why i don't have to do the defen

remember, gantz served as his chief of staff, head of the israeli military. of the leaders used to be netanyahu's finance minister. the party he confronted was not a left-hand party. it was a central right party. so you can imagine them forming a broad coalition, particularly if there's a prospect of a peace deal coming from the trump administration. >> to that point how much of a boost was it for netanyahu, his strong relationship with president trump? >> oh, it's huge. if people are wondering how is it netanyahu got re-elected, this is his fifth election, the fact is he's benefited -- he's succeeded diplomatically, he succeeded on the security front and economically. the economy is booming like never before. having trump as an ally, moving the u.s. embassy to jerusalem, u.s. recognition of israeli sovereignty on the golan heights. last week the u.s. deciding the irgc around the revolutionary guard corps is a foreign terrorist organization, all are huge wins. so there's no question a strong ally in the white house is a huge boost for bibi. >>> we will leave

pointy of his main rival winning as many seats both code and the blue and white coalition of benny gantz have secured thirty five seats but it's now is expected to get the support of smaller right wing parties to form a coalition government we begin our coverage with this report from harry fawcett in tel aviv. after a night of wild be diverging exit polls benjamin netanyahu waited and waited until it started to move in his favor the two in the morning he took to the stage to declare what he called an unimaginable victory. with me already tonight i have started talks with the heads of the right wing parties our natural partners already tonight almost everyone declared publicly that they will recommend i form the next government they will recommend it to our president i intend to work quickly to establish a stable national government i want to make it clear it will be a right wing government but i intend to be the prime minister of all israeli citizens right or left jews and non jews alike israeli citizens. the proven master of israeli electoral politics well aware that his carefully culti

and his ratings of voting in a closely contested election political newcomer benny gantz a centrist enough for my general dismounting to stiff challenge to four term prime minister binyamin netanyahu and his dr think they could possibly be told truck correspondent in jerusalem. of a warm welcome to you i'm honored that shima a pleasure to have your company. pressure is mounting on libyan general khalifa haftar to stop his advance on the capital tripoli forces launch the general carried out an air strike on tripoli's only functioning airport on monday reports say the strike hit a run by causing casualties puffed out is trying to seize tripoli from the un backed government there thousands have fled the fighting. so who is general have and why has he started this offensive we have this report. the overthrow of colonel gadhafi and twenty eleven plunged libya into chaos for four decades he had ruled the country with an iron hand holding together libya's disparate groups including some one hundred forty tripes and clans his death left a power vacuum the government in the capital has limited powe

former military chief benny gantz from the centrist blue and white alliance is projected to win thirty seven seats while the official results may not come for days as this claimed victory calling it a historic vote. they said we will not go into politics and we did not say we won't commit what he did they said we want you not. to say we were mean and we will and we were. well the incumbent prime minister benjamin netanyahu of the likud party has also claimed victory there were celebrations at the party headquarters that asked the exit polls began to appear that anyone who is expected to address his supporters but we may see the vote as a setback for the long term leader who has promised to annex jewish settlements in the occupied west bank ahead of the polls. i'm very excited that the people of israel gave me their trust for a fifth time and a bigger trust them before. and they will move i'm telling you again the people of israel gave their trust for us and this is a president i cannot remember when we got more seats according to most exit polls the right are going will continue to lea

yes so benny gantz in israel actually is a well known figure because he was the army chief during the last gaza war so everyone knows him but of course he's new to politics but as part of his team he took a very very popular politician into his party so we have a number of interesting figures here who resonate very well with israeli voters especially because they stand for security and security something that benjamin netanyahu has always been able to. just this was what he was voted for was elected for in the past and that's why it's one of the toughest challenges coming now from any guns otherwise there these elections haven't been so much about content or about issues i think as we heard in the reports it's very much a referendum on benjamin netanyahu as leadership and of course pentagon has been playing on that has been talking about. corruption and has been calling for unity and accusing rightly or wrongly benjamin netanyahu of sowing division in israeli society so that's more or less been his platform right but arguably netanyahu literally has a trump card is that giving him an

>> reporter: neck in neck when it comes to benny gantz and benjamin netanyahu. it could be days before this is thwarted out. it was fascinating watching both leaders, benjamin netanyahu and gantz going before their voters. they claimed victory with confidence. only one of them is going to be right. looks like benjamin netanyahu is the one with the easiest path to the prime ministership. it looks like he's going to have enough support from the smaller parties to reach the magic number of 61. therefore, a majority. now, at 97% of the vote counted, the two men, it looks like 35/35 in terms of seats but benjamin netanyahu with the coalition advantage. benn benny gantz has to get it from allies to pull a rabbit out of a hat. it could happen. benjamin netanyahu is favored to be the one asked to form a coalition, but not a done deal, yet. >> thank you so much for that in jerusalem for us this morning. >> big deal there. >>> he's been railing against millionaires for years. now, bernie sanders is one of them. what does the socialist and 20 candidate have to say about al

gantz just tweeted in the last few minutes. we won. the president can see the picture, remember, the president who calls on someone to form the government. gantz is saying the president should call on the winner to form the next government. he's saying, i'm the winner. >> so, this is a very interesting distinction that is more common in parliamentary democracies than it would be in the united states. but somebody's got to form a coalition and neither of these two major candidates are likely to have enough votes or enough seats in their own party to form a majority. so they've got to appeal to other parties and this is part of netanyahu's legacy. the ability to forge those coalitions generally speaking with parties on the right and the far right, which has ended up creating the most conservative government in isra israel's history. >> yeah, i mean, he may be on the phone right now. they'll be thinking about trading both sides. the president will be weighing up who he should call to form the next government. look, these are just exit pol

election with most of the votes counted he is running neck and neck with his main challenger benny gantz of the centrist blue and white party but netanyahu is in a stronger position to form a coalition with the support of a number of right wing parties across israel in a moment for the latest but first this report. there were a pirate technics music finetune yahoo when he took to the stage at the likud party event in the. to claim victory. i am very moved that the nation of israel has once again given its trust to me. and done so for the fifth time it will be moved to. be. they have again given their trust to us and to me. it's unprecedented. when did we ever get so many seats i don't remember much i could have been looking for a little man to go to to move to. a fifth term would make netanyahu israel's longest serving prime minister even surpassing the founding father of the jewish state. i have to voting and it exit polls appear to indicate a neck and neck race between netanyahu and his closest rival benny kens of the centrist blue and white and i n's indeed around the time netanyahu m

challenge of benny gantz in a dead heat as both declare victory we'll have analysis of reaction in just a minute. president clinton dismisses the investigation into the alleged collusion between russia and twenty sixteen calling it total nonsense. the ministration finds a fresh salvo with its european allies pledging to haiti you goods with tariffs worth as much as eleven billion dollars u.s. says the moves in retaliation for subsidies given to boeing rival us. news live from russia this is. with the world news this hour first off for you then counting is underway in israel's general election but the exit polls indicate a neck and neck race between incumbent prime minister benjamin netanyahu and his political rival benny gantz with both now claiming an early victory looking over the exit polls in tel aviv here's our middle east correspondent. what we're hearing from the initial exit polls really confirms what we've heard from surveys and polls conducted in the run up to the elections and that is that the two leaders the incumbent israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu and his main co

to call israeli election exit polls put a long time premier benyamin netanyahu and challenger benny gantz in a dead heat as both declare victory these are scenes from the supporters' camp for benny gantz where they already think they've got the election in the bag we'll have live analysis in less than a minute. president putin dismisses the investigation into the alleged collusion between donald trump and russia and twenty sixteen calling it total nonsense. from the ministration fires a fresh sell voted to european allies pledging to hit e.u. goods with tariffs worth as much as eleven billion dollars the u.s. says the moves are retaliation for subsidies given to boeing rival us. world news live from russia this is r.t. international ancona bray in moscow with the news this hour first of all we're tracking what's been happening in israel where voting is over in the general election but exit polls indicate a neck and neck race between incumbent prime minister benjamin netanyahu and his closest political rival benny gantz with both now claiming victory by looking over the exit polls for a ci

but there have also been persistent leaks not totally refuted that gantz could under certain conditions agree to serve with netanyahu in a unity government that would be the biggest twist yet in this bitter election season kerry forces al-jazeera west jerusalem still ahead on al-jazeera the race to contain cholera in mozambique nine hundred thousand doses of vaccine are on the way . hello again it's good to have you back well here across china we have seen quite a bit of rain of the last few days the monsoon rain is beginning to come into play across this area for hong kong no you're going to be seeing some clouds and possibly some rain on the increase over the next few days you had one day of a break but that's not the last too long up here towards north is going to be some of the heaviest rain we see in this region where you see the darker greens that means we could be seeing anywhere between one hundred to possibly two hundred millimeters of rain over the next few days well here across india it has been the heat that we have been concerned about particularly in the interior areas tem