Rival Irish parties strike deal to form coalition government

LONDON (AP) — Ireland’s long-dominant rival political parties have agreed on terms for a coalition government, four months after an election that shook the country’s political landscape. The deal will see Fine Gael — the party of incumbent Prime Minister Leo Varadkar — and Fianna Fail led by Micheal Martin govern alongside the smaller Green Party. Under the proposal, Martin will become prime minister. He will serve until the end of 2022 and then hand the job back to Varadkar. The plan still has to be approved by the parties’ memberships. Left-wing nationalist party Sinn Fein looks set to be shut out of the government despite a breakthrough that saw it win the largest share of the votes in February’s election.