Israeli political leaders agreed Wednesday to hold a snap election next March.

Israeli political leaders agreed Wednesday to hold a snap election next March.

Parliament's spokesman said the vote would be held on March 17, after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu tore apart his fractious coalition government by firing two centrist ministers and calling for the early election.

With tensions with the Palestinians running high, polls show Netanyahu's Likud and other rightwing parties likely to increase their share of the vote from the last election only last year.

Another win for the Israeli right would leave little hope for the so-called peace talks, after the last round of negotiations collapsed with no progress and following high tensions in Jerusalem and the West Bank.

"After consultations between different parties, it has been decided to hold elections on March 17," parliament spokesman Eran Sidis told AFP, adding that the procedure to adopt a law to dissolve parliament would begin on Wednesday.

Lawmakers were to vote on the preliminary reading of a bill to dissolve the 120-member Knesset, which must pass three readings with an absolute majority.

It was not clear how long it would take for the bill to win final approval.

Late Tuesday, Netanyahu said he was formulating a law to dissolve parliament "as soon as possible" although such a bill had already been tabled by four opposition parties earlier in the week.

The last general election was in January 2013, with the next poll not officially slated until November 2017.