Israel PM Netanyahu seeks early general election
Benjamin Netanyahu said Yair Lapid and Tzipi Livni had "harshly attacked" both himself and the coalition government.
Mr Netanyahu explained that he wanted an election two years early to win "a clear mandate to lead Israel".
Disagreements over a series of economic and political policies have strained relations within the coalition.
Under Israeli electoral law, voting would probably take place in mid-March if the Knesset were to be dissolved this week.
'Personal risk'
Speaking at a news conference on Tuesday, Mr Netanyahu said it was "impossible" to lead the government with the current coalition, describing Ms Livni and Mr Lapid's activities as a "putsch".
The PM said he was taking "a personal risk" by calling for elections but that he was doing so "for the good of the country".
Israeli voters are no strangers to transitory coalition administrations - the current government is the 32nd they've see in the 67 years since the foundation of the state.
But it is almost certainly destined to be one of the shortest-lived; it is only two years since the last parliamentary elections here.
The last few weeks have seen a sharp rise in tensions between key partners in the current right-of-centre coalition.
Mr Netanyahu is thought to regard Mr Lapid as being too ambitious for comfort.
He may be hoping to return to power at the head of a re-formulated coalition in which the finance minister's secular party would be replaced with a religious block representing the interest of ultra-orthodox Jews.
Israeli MPs are expected to vote on a bill to dissolve the parliament on Wednesday.
Mr Netanyahu's comments come after talks with Mr Lapid - who leads Yesh Atid, the centrist party that is the second largest in the governing coalition - ended without an agreement on Monday night.
Mr Netanyahu and his ministers have disagreed about the content of a bill designed to strengthen the Jewish nature of the Israeli state and over a proposed tax break for first-time home buyers, which Mr Lapid regards as his signature issue.
Yesh Atid leader Yair Lapid said the elections were "unnecessary"
Ms Livni reportedly accused the prime minister of cowardice in his sacking of her
On Tuesday morning, Mr Lapid told an economic conference that the prime minister had "decided to take Israel to unnecessary elections".
As speculation about an election mounted, Ms Livni accused Mr Netanyahu of "extremism, provocativeness and paranoia".
The government did not know how to fight terrorism while also "upholding freedom and Zionism", she added.
Mr Netanyahu and his ministers disagreed about strengthening the Jewish nature of the Israeli state
Ms Livni, who leads the centrist Hatnua party, also accused Mr Netanyahu of "inciting sectors in Israel against each other".
'Cowardice'
Mr Netanyahu's office issued a statement on Tuesday announcing: "The prime minister plans to call for parliament's dissolution as soon as possible and to go to the people and get a clear mandate to lead Israel."
It also said he had ordered the dismissal of Mr Lapid and Ms Livni.
"In past weeks, including the past day, ministers Lapid and Livni have harshly attacked the government that I head. I will no longer tolerate an opposition inside the government," the statement added.
Following Mr Netanyahu's new conference, Ms Livni reportedly accused the prime minister of cowardice in his sacking of her, saying that he "didn't even dare to look me in the eye to fire me", and she denied there was a "putsch" against him.
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