Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has tested negative for coronavirus, his office said late on Sunday. The official, as well as those working close to him, had been tested for the deadly virus as a "precaution," while none of them displayed any symptoms of the disease.

The coronavirus test was harshly criticized by Netanyahu's political rival, Benny Gantz, who blamed the PM for staging a public stunt and "manipulating" the people. While the incumbent PM is pushing for an "emergency unity government" with Gantz, claiming it is needed to fight the outbreak, Gantz has been reluctant to accept Netanyahu's advances.

Late on Sunday, Israel’s President Reuven Rivlin’s office said that Gantz will be entrusted with forming the government, in a new attempt to end the country’s nearly year-long political deadlock.