Peres loses Israel Labour fight

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Veteran Israeli politician Shimon Peres has unexpectedly lost a battle for the Labour Party leadership. Trade union leader Amir Peretz has narrowly defeated the 82-year-old Nobel Peace prize winner. A party commission rejected Mr Peres' accusations of fraud, and declared Mr Peretz the winner.

The unexpected result could mean early national elections, as Mr Peretz has said he will take Labour out of the country's coalition government. Mr Peres had taken Labour into government in January as a junior partner in a government headed by Likud Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. Labour backed Mr Sharon's withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, a policy which had divided Likud and which Mr Sharon could not have pushed through without his junior partner's support.

Mr Peres wanted to continue in coalition until the next scheduled elections in November 2006, but Mr Peretz has said Labour should withdraw and work for early elections.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/4423676.stm

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1. I can't believe this article got no replies...

On second thoughts, yes I can ;)

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3. I don't see

where there's much to say at this point.

On the one hand, Peretz's victory is a good thing as far as the political system as a whole is concerned; it's unhealthy for a democracy to lack an opposition.

OTOH, I'm very wary both of Peretz's economic policies and his use of power (this is a man who orchastrated an economy-wide strike because he was insulted by something the then-Minister of the Economy said, and uner who Israel has come to be a contender for the record of strike-days per year), and I have little idea what his positions on non-economic issues are - a significant detriment in the leader of a man who would be PM.

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2. Israel's Labor party significantly stronger with new chairman: poll

JERUSALEM, Nov. 11 (Xinhuanet) -- Had the Israeli general elections been held now, the Labor party led by newly-elected chairman Amir Peretz would have significantly increased its power,according to a latest poll by local newspaper Ha'aretz released on Friday.

If Peretz-led Labor now contended against the ruling Likud party headed by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon in the elections, Labor would win 28 seats and Likud, 39, in the 120-member Knesset(Parliament), said the poll.

The poll also showed that if Sharon left Likud and founded anew party together with former Labor leader Shimon Peres, who iscurrently Vice Premier, the two veteran leaders would win 32 seats, while Labor would get 27 and Likud led by Benjamin Netanyahu, 25,in that case.

Labor currently holds 21 seats in the parliament and Likud, 40.The poll also indicated that many Israelis believe that Peretz's victory in the Labor primaries increased the party's chances to regain power.

About 41 percent of the surveyed said Peretz' election as Labor chairman increases the party's chances to regain power while only 20 percent believed in the opposite.

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2005-11/11/content_3767094.htm