JERUSALEM, Nov. 19 -- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu heaved a brief sigh of relief on Monday, as his major coalition partners decided to remain in the government despite earlier threats to resign over differences on defense matters.

This crisis, not the first to plague Netanyahu's coalition, broke out after violence between Israel and the Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip, flared up last week.

The immediate result was the resignation of Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman after his demand for a harsher response against Hamas was not met.

Afterwards, Naftali Bennett, a coalition partner from the hardline Jewish Home party, threatened resignation before retracting and announcing that he would give Netanyahu one last chance to adopt a tougher stance against the threats Israel faces.

"We are in one of the most complex security situations and during a period like this, you don't topple a government ... you don't go to elections," Netanyahu warned hours ahead of Bennet's announcement.

The Israeli general elections are slated for November 2019, but in recent months there has been increasing talk of early elections.

Netanyahu is about to complete a decade in office, one of the longest tenures held by a leader in the country with political instability, as no Israeli government has completed a full term since 1988.

"There is a great chance elections will still be advanced," said Avraham Diskin, an associate professor with Political Science at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.

【国际英语资讯:Spotlight: Netanyahu struggles to break through early election clamor after Israel-Gaza flar】相关文章：

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