Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu asked the head of Israel's occupation entity, Yitzhak Herzog, to extend his mandate to form the next government by 14 days.

Netanyahu's 28-day deadline expires at midnight Saturday-Sunday, with Herzog under no obligation to extend Netanyahu's deadline for government formation, and may be set for a shorter period of 14 days.

Netanyahu is seeking to pass legislation in the Knesset that would allow the implementation of coalition agreements he reached with his partners before the inauguration of the new government, after he ended coalition negotiations with his far-right party partners.

Next Monday, the Knesset General Assembly will vote to appoint a new Knesset president from Likud, which will open the way for Netanyahu's right-wing coalition to make "legal amendments."