Netanyahu wins 2-week extension to form Israeli government

Benjamin Netanyahu on Friday won a two-week extension to his deadline to form Israel's next government.

Israeli President Shimon Peres granted the request to the prime minister-designate after a meeting in Jerusalem.

Netanyahu could form a coalition government of hardline and ultra-Orthodox parties by his Sunday deadline, but says he wants to try to form a wider "unity" government that includes his more moderate rivals, Kadima and Labor.

"I could have presented a government to you and the people of Israel by Sunday, a good government, but I chose to ask for the extension to make every effort to form a unity government," Netanyahu told Peres.

He said a unity government was  necessary to deal with the security and economic problems facing Israel.

Peres asked Netanyahu to form the government last month after his party won 27 seats in the Feb. 10 general election. Under Israeli laws, Netanyahu would then have six weeks to build a coalition government.

Tzipi Livni's Kadima party edged out Netanyahu's Likud by a one-seat margin in the February election (28 to 27), but neither party could command the 120-seat Knesset.

Netanyahu later won the backing of Avigdor Lieberman, whose ultra-nationalist Yisrael Beiteinu party won 15 seats in the vote.

Livni has refused to join a unity government, because Netanyahu won't express support for the creation of a Palestinian state and because he rejected her demand to serve as prime minister for half of the government's term.

Netanyahu is still holding talks, however, with the Labor party, led by Defence Minister Ehud Barak, and Labor is slated to hold a meeting on Tuesday to vote on joining the government.