Cover image: A woman passes by a banner depicting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and US President Donald Trump day after the country held a national election, in Jerusalem, October 28 , 2026. © Ronen Zvulun, Reuters

Which way will Israel break? Netanyahu still in it after election night surprises

· France 24

Horse trading lies ahead between the 11 parties that will make up the next 120-seat Knesset. In the mix, there's nationalists on both sides of the Bibi divide, with bitter battles over religion, the nature of Israel's democracy and over whether a coalition can include the 20 percent of Arab Israelis who this time turned out in droves. Can they enter government or even strike a deal to support the opposition? After years of hardline rhetoric against Palestinians, is that even possible? In other words, is Israel about to get a lot more polarised or forge a whole new path?

Read moreArab parties ‘have woken up’: Israel's uncertain election may deliver surprise kingmakers

Produced by François Picard, Andrew Hilliar, Juliette Laffont, Ilayda Habip, Charles Wente.