Center left dominates as Israeli Kadima wins
Palestine-Israel, Politics, 3/30/2006

(here is our unpublished report from yesterday) The Israeli acting prime minister Ehud Olmert announced winning of the Israeli parliamentary elections, after opinion polls put his party Kadima in the forefront followed by the Labor party amid a great decrease for the Likud party.

Olmert said he will continue disengagement in the West Bank. In a speech before his supporters, Olmert expressed Israel's readiness to give up what he called parts of the occupied lands in order to establish the state of Palestine beside Israel.

He also stressed determination to demarcate the permanent borders for Israel through talks with the Palestinians, but he said that Israel will act alone if the Palestinians will not move.

Olmert stressed that the Palestinian Authority has to honor the Roadmap peace plan, as he alleged, stressing that on that basis, there can be sitting on the table of negotiations.

Meantime, Haaretz (www.Haaretz.com) reported wednesday that a "center-left parties gaining a total of between 62 and 66 seats" with Kadima having 28 seats, Labor 20 seats, and Shas (Sephardi ultra-Orthodox) rose to 13, Avigdor Lieberman's Russian immigrant-dominated faction Yisrael Beiteinu having 12 seats, with Likud down to 11 seats, "The right-wing National Union-National Religious Party secured nine seats" and "In the largest surprise of the night, the Pensioners' Party won seven seats," United Torah Judaism have 6 seats, and Meretz at 4 seats.

Haaretz (www.Haaretz.com) reported that Olmert's "confidants said Shas and the Pensioners' Party would be partners in the new government. During the course of the day Wednesday, Kadima will set up its negotiating team and begin working to create Israel's next ruling coalition."

Haaretz reported that Haim Ramon said "Kadima will be able to implement a withdrawal from the West Bank with the support of between 70 and 80 Knesset members," with the Labor Party "a possible central partner."

Previous Stories:
  Expected results for the Israeli elections   (3/28/2006)
  Israelis vote in critical elections   (3/28/2006)
  Al-Quds mufti, Palestinian groups call for protecting al-Aqsa mosque   (3/27/2006)

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