Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reached a deal to form a coalition government.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reached a deal to form a coalition government.

Officials said that Netanyahu’s Likud-Yisrael Beitenu party list will form a coalition with the centrist Yesh Atid and Hatnua and the far-right Jewish Home.

"There is a government," Likud spokeswoman Noga Katz was quoted as saying by Reuters news agency.

On his Facebook page, Yair Lapid, the leader of Yesh Atid, says the coalition agreement will be signed "probably tonight".

Talks on the size and shape of the cabinet went on late into Wednesday night between Likud and its two main coalition partners, Yesh Atid and Jewish Home.
Netanyahu was forced to give up his alliance with the ultra-Orthodox parties: Shas and United Torah Judaism.

It took five weeks to reach deals with his new partners after the general election on 22 January.

Apart from the prime minister, there will be 21 ministers, making it the smallest government in decades, Israeli media reported. Yesh Atid is expected to be responsible for finance and education and Likud will run the interior ministry.

Once the deal is signed, it will have to be approved by the Israeli parliament or Knesset and sworn in.

Yesh Atid has secured five ministerial portfolios, while Jewish Home parties will have three, reports said.
Likud and Yisrael Beitenu, which formed an alliance ahead of the vote, saw their position in the Knesset weakened by the vote.

They lost a quarter of their 42 seats, leaving them with 31 out of 120.
Yesh Atid took 19 seats and Jewish Home, led by Naftali Bennett, finished in fourth place with 12.