Israel’s general elections this week have delivered a paralysing political deadlock, a situation that could forever impact the region — and the rest of the world. At the time of writing this piece, with nearly 97 per cent of votes counted, no political faction has secured the 61 seats required to form a majority in the 120-seat Knesset, or the Parliament of Israel.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition of right-wing, far-right and ultra-Orthodox parties leads with 53 seats, eight short of a majority. Trailing closely is the (more or less) centrist, anti-Netanyahu opposition bloc led by Gadi Eisenkot of the Yashar party, with 48 seats.

This means that the kingmakers are likely to be Arab-led parties, with the Joint List claiming 11 seats and Ra'am securing eight, bringing their combined total to 19.

No matter what the numbers are, there will be a frantic search for an ideal coalition to set up the next government, which, in all likelihood, will dictate the trajectory of the ongoing conflict with Iran and shape the rhetoric surrounding the United States midterm elections next Tuesday. It could also test the resilience of Israel’s strategic partnership with India, which had expanded recently on the foundation of a deep personal friendship between Netanyahu and Prime........

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