Israel Heads to the Polls as Netanyahu Rules Out Palestinian State

Israelis were voting in parliament elections Tuesday, after a heated three-month campaign that focused on economic issues but ended with a dramatic last-minute pledge by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to prevent the establishment of a Palestinian state.
Netanyahu's comments marked a reversal of long-standing promises to the United States and were seen as a last-ditch effort to appeal to hard-line voters as he fights for his political survival in a close race.
He claimed that any state established alongside Israel would be controlled by Islamic extremists who "will attack us with rockets."
Netanyahu said in a phone interview with Israel TV's Channel 10 after casting his ballot early on Tuesday, "Who wants such a thing?"
Netanyahu appeared to be appealing to his hard-line base with these comments, after polls indicated his Likud Party is trailing slightly behind the Zionist Union of centrist challenger Isaac Herzog.