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  • Barak won't quit

    Barak 'will not quit' over report

    Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak has said he will not quit Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's government over its handling of the 2006 Lebanon war.

    His decision comes after an official inquiry called the war a failure, but spared Mr Olmert serious criticism.

    Mr Barak had threatened - depending on the report's findings - to demand Mr Olmert's resignation or early polls.

    If Mr Barak had pulled Labor's 19 members from the coalition, Mr Olmert looked set to face new elections.

    "Why am I staying? I'm staying in the post of defence minister because I know what kind of challenges face Israel," Mr Barak told reporters, before entering Sunday's weekly Cabinet meeting.

    Political survival

    Correspondents say the decision by Mr Barak - who joined the government coalition about a year after the Lebanon war - removes for now any threat to Mr Olmert's government.

    The prime minister insisted he would not step down last Wednesday after the publication of the government-appointed Winograd inquiry.

    Although the report did not blame Mr Olmert directly, it found the 34-day war against Hezbollah had been a "large and serious" failure.

    The conflict broke out in July 2006, when Hezbollah fighters captured two Israeli soldiers and killed three others in a cross border raid.

    If Mr Barak had quit, Mr Olmert's coalition would have been left short of the 61 MPs needed for a majority in the 120-member Knesset (Israeli parliament).

    The defence minister's decision to remain in government may have been influenced by Labor's opinion poll ratings, say analysts.
    Source: BBC NEWS | Middle East | Barak 'will not quit' over report
    "Every man has his weakness. Mine was always just cigarettes."

  • #2
    Being associated with the Olmert government might end up backfiring on Barak in the next election.
    In Iran people belive pepsi stands for pay each penny save israel. -urmomma158
    The Russian Navy is still a threat, but only to those unlucky enough to be Russian sailors.-highsea

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