Israeli parliament okays preliminary vote to disperse

Israeli parliament

JERUSALEM, Dec. 2 (Xinhua) -- Israeli parliament on Wednesday voted in favor of a bill to disperse itself, in a move that could force a fourth election within two years.

Some 61 lawmakers voted in favor of the bill, while 54 voted against it. The bill still needs to undergo three more full rounds of votes before getting its final approval.

The bill, sponsored by the opposition, was passed after leader of the Blue and White party Benny Gantz, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's main coalition partner, decided to support the move. On Tuesday, he accused Netanyahu of "lying" to the public and said he lost the hope that their power-sharing government could function properly.