Netanyahu gets two more weeks to form Israel gov’t

JERUSALEM

Israeli President Shimon Peres on March 2 gave Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu an additional two weeks to try to form a new government after he was unable to complete the task during an initial four-week period.

Talks with potential partners have been deadlocked since elections on Jan. 22 and if he is unable to form a government by March 16 a new poll could be called. During the 28-day period, Netanyahu managed to forge a pact only with the party of former foreign minister, Tzipi Livni, whose six-member faction “The Movement” has given him 37 seats, way short of the minimum 61 needed to confirm a new coalition. In a statement following his meeting with Peres on March 2, Netanyahu hinted that at least one potential coalition partner refused to sit alongside others, Reuters reported.