Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's surprise invitation to his main rival to form a coalition government after Tuesday's election has been rejected. The offer was made to former General Benny Gantz, the leader of the centrist Blue and White party, and marked a change in strategy for Netanyahu who had hoped ahead of the election to form a right-wing Israeli government. The offer was swiftly rejected. The prime minister said Thursday: “I was surprised and disappointed by the fact that, as of now, Benny Gantz still refuses my call to meet ... Gantz, my offer that the two of us meet stands. It’s what the public expects of us.” Gantz previously ruled out forming a government with a Netanyahu-led Likud party due to the corruption charges against the prime minister.