“Netanyahu has just been rewarded by Israeli voters for blatantly disrespecting the United States and its president, for rejecting the international consensus in support of a two-state solution, and for shamelessly race-baiting against Israel’s Arab citizens,” writes FMEP President Matthew Duss.

“It’s been about six hours since the polls closed in Israel. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has scored a dramatic victory, far outpacing the pre-election and exit polls. The consequences for Israelis, Palestinians, and the rest of the world could be very grave,” writes FMEP Program Director Mitchell Plitnick.

“Israel’s election has done a lot to reveal the challenges facing the country and the intentions of the men who seek to lead it,” write the editors of the New York Times. “Mr. Netanyahu showed that he was desperate, and craven, enough to pull out all the stops. On Monday, he promised that if his Likud faction remained in power, he would never allow the creation of a Palestinian state, thus repudiating a position he had taken in 2009.”

“Yesterday’s victory is not only a personal victory to Netanyahu,” writes Meron Rapoport. “It is a victory to right-wing ideology in Israel, another proof to how much Israel is a right-wing society. This does not mean that the peace camp is over, as the impressive success of the Joint List party of Ayman Odeh tells us. It just means it needs a new beginning, a new thinking.”

The Palestinian leadership slammed the Israeli public on Wednesday for voting for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right wing Likud party, saying they had chosen “occupation and settlement building” over peace talks.

“When considering whether to join a Netanyahu-led coalition, Kulanu head Moshe Kahlon must bear in mind his party’s political platform, which calls for advancing an arrangement with the Palestinians,” writes Akiva Eldar.

“Netanyahu picked a fight with a sitting U.S. president and declared there will never be a Palestinian State. It might have helped him squeeze out another election victory, but where is Israel heading?” asks Noam Sheizaf.

“The success of the Joint List is the Arab public’s message — an outstretched hand — to its Jewish compatriots, which is the antithesis of the message it received in return,” write Haggai Matar and Yael Marom.

“Observers may have baulked, but Bibi knew what he was doing. Benjamin Netanyahu, incumbent Israeli prime minister, has spent the past few days making alarmingly racist and intransigent statements – and as an election tactic, it worked,” writes Rachel Shabi.

There is talk about implementing the initiative proposed by UN special coordinator Robert Serry to impose a long-term truce between Hamas and Israel, in return of ending the Israeli siege imposed on the Gaza Strip since 2007.

“Clashes between armed militants and Palestinian security forces in the West Bank’s Balata camp could threaten the existence of the Palestinian government,” writes Daoud Kuttab.