WELCOME TO AFP'S LIVE REPORT on Israel's general election, in which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to return to power but to assemble a new coalition that will take a swing to the right.

Amid unseasonably warm weather, Israelis are still voting at the more than 10,000 polling stations around the country.

Polling stations close at around 2000 GMT and we're expecting the first exit polls shortly afterwards.

Opinion polling ahead of the vote predicted an easy win for a joint list bringing Netanyahu's Likud party together with the hardline nationalists of Yisrael Beitenu -- but the pairing was only expected to score 32 seats in the 12-seat Knesset.

Factors including a weaker Likud and the rise of 40-year-old Naftali Bennett -- the charismatic leader of the far-right Jewish Home party -- have led to expectations of a more right-wing government.

Such a government will be less likely to seek a peace deal with the Palestinians and could lead to more diplomatic isolation for Israel. It will also have to tackle domestic issues including a budget crisis and anger over spiralling prices.

Stay with us for regular updates.