Benjamin Netanyahu calls for early poll in Israel and fires two ministers
Premier plunges Israel into bitter campaign after sacking finance and justice ministers who he accused of trying to stage a 'putsch'
Israeli political leaders agreed yesterday to hold a snap election in March, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gambling on a return to power after his ruling coalition collapsed.
The Israeli parliament's spokesman said the vote would be held on March 17, after Netanyahu tore apart his fractious coalition government by firing two centrist ministers and calling for the early polls.
With Israeli-Palestinian tensions running high, polls show Netanyahu's Likud and other rightwing parties are likely to increase their share of the vote from the previous election held just last year.
Another win for the Israeli right would leave little hope for Middle East peace talks, after the last round of negotiations collapsed with no progress and following a spate of violence in Jerusalem and the West Bank.
Netanyahu appealed to voters to grant Likud a "clear mandate", expressing frustration at nearly two years of coalition politics. "Against the serious challenges facing the state of Israel - security, economic and regional - there is a need for a large and experienced ruling party," he told a meeting of Likud lawmakers.
"Anyone who wants to give a clear mandate to a prime minister from Likud needs to give many seats to the party," he said.