A two-state solution to the Middle East conflict will be impossible with an Israeli government headed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas said on Thursday.

"Netanyahu's statements against a two-state solution and against a Palestinian state... are proof, if correct, that there is no seriousness in the (future) Israeli government about a political solution that will lead to the establishment of two states," he said a day after the Israeli leader snatched an upset election victory.

Results released by Israel's Central Elections Committee on Thursday confirmed a big win for the rightwing Likud party of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the center-left Zionist Union. 

The Likud won 30 of the 120 seats in parliament to 24 for the Zionist Union.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's victory in the Israeli election will not disrupt painstaking U.S. efforts to reach a nuclear deal with Iran, the State Department said Wednesday.

The Israeli leader opposes any accommodation with Tehran and came to Washington during the campaign to address U.S. lawmakers and denounce the agreement under negotiation as a "bad deal."

The EU congratulated Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on his election victory Wednesday but added it was committed to relaunching the Middle East peace process which he appeared to repudiate during the campaign.

"The EU is committed to working with the incoming Israeli government on a mutually beneficial relationship as well as on the re-launch of the peace process," EU foreign affairs head Federica Mogherini said in a statement.

Israeli center-left leader Isaac Herzog ruled out Wednesday prospects of a unity government with Benjamin Netanyahu, the day after losing a general election to the right-wing prime minister's Likud party.

"Going into opposition is the only realistic option facing us," he told a meeting of his Zionist Union party in Tel Aviv.

Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas will work with any Israeli government that accepts the principle of a two-state solution, his spokesman said after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu won a shock reelection victory.

"It doesn't matter to us who the next prime minister of Israel is, what we expect from this government is to recognize the two-state solution," Nabil Abu Rudeina said in a statement.

Western governments gave a muted reaction Wednesday to the re-election of Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu amid fears that his increasingly hardline stance has fatally undermined the Middle East peace process.

The EU congratulated Netanyahu on his victory, but said it was committed to relaunching the peace process between Israel and the Palestinians that he rejected in the last days of the campaign.

Some love him, others loathe him but there is one thing they all agree on: Israel's Benjamin Netanyahu, who won a shock victory in Tuesday's election, is a master of political brinkmanship.

Ahead of the vote, which was widely seen as a referendum on his six-year tenure as prime minister, the polls showed his rightwing Likud trailing the center-left Zionist Union by up to four seats.

Benjamin Netanyahu swept to a stunning election victory on Wednesday, securing a third straight term for an Israeli leader who has deepened tensions with the Palestinians and infuriated key ally Washington.

After a closely-fought campaign, Netanyahu's rightwing Likud party confounded the polls to win 30 of the 120 seats in parliament against 24 for the centre-left Zionist Union. 

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu beat the odds on Wednesday to win a resounding election victory that will likely deepen tensions with the Palestinians and the West.

With nearly all of the votes counted, his rightwing Likud party was seen taking 30 of the Knesset's 120 seats, with the center-left Zionist Union a distant second on 24.