Benjamin Netanyahu has been accused of using smear tactics to cling to power, after he claimed that Arab Israeli parties had used foreign backing to “steal” Tuesday’s election, in which the prime minister’s coalition lost its parliamentary majority.

Netanyahu and his allies called on the internal security service, Shin Bet, to investigate alleged vote buying and other irregularities in Palestinian communities in Israel , supposedly funded by foreign money.

Gadi Eisenkot, the leader of the main opposition bloc, accused the prime minister and his Likud party of trying to derail the election results.

“It’s already clear that Likud and Netanyahu have embarked on a coordinated, organised campaign seeking to delegitimise the results of the election,” Eisenkot said in a video message.

Gadi Eisenkot at an election night rally in Tel Aviv after the first exit polls were announced.…