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Photo: Yaron Brenner
Peretz and Peres
Photo: Yaron Brenner

Peretz ready to bolt coalition

New Labor chairman asks party members to prepare resignation letters

Labor Chairman Amir Peretz is preparing resignation letters with the signatures of Labor party ministers, to be used as a bargaining chip during his scheduled meeting with Prime Minister Ariel Sharon on Thursday.

 

Aides to Peretz say the move will prevent the prime minister from preemptively sacking Labor party ministers by citing any number of pretexts. A Peretz source also said the Prime Minister's Office has attempted to arrange a meeting between the newly elected Labor party chairman and Omri Sharon, the prime minister's son.

 

Peretz's aides responded by saying there should be no problem arranging a meeting between PM Sharon's son and Shani Peretz, the Labor leader's daughter.

 

The procedure of collecting the signatures began after a memorial for assassinated prime minister Yitzhak Rabin.

 

Upon leaving the ceremony, Labor Minister Binyamin Ben Eliezer, the first to sign the letter of resignation, burst into a phone booth with Peretz, where they spoke for a number of minutes.

 

Peretz then gradually spoke to the remaining Labor ministers.

 

 



Peretz held a round of talks with Labor party ministers and received their support for quitting the unity government. There are signs, however, that Labor will vote against the proposal to dissolve the Knesset on Wednesday.

 

'Government has come to its end' 

 

On Thursday, Peretz is scheduled to meet the prime minister, where he expected to tell him that Labor is determined to leave the government. The Labor leader will then ask the prime minister to set an agreed date for general elections.

 

Earlier, Shinui Party Chairman Yosef Lapid said that the government has come to its end during a meeting with opposition members Monday, convened to discuss the possibility of early elections, less than one week after Labor Party Chairman Amir Peretz was elected.

 

The political establishment is anxiously awaiting the result of Wednesday's proposal to dissolve the Knesset, which would see early elections in the coming months.

 

The Labor Party is expected to meet next week to authorize the step of quitting the government, and the party could vote in favor of a no confidence vote on Monday, which would bring down the government, and usher in elections within three months.

 

A source close to Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said in response, “I can already see the Likud campaign against Labor in the next elections. It won’t be too difficult. If this is how Peretz treats ministers of his own party, how can the nation trust these people?”

 

Meanwhile, sources in the PM’s Office said Sharon has yet to decide on whether he will run for Likud chairmanship or form a separate party, but say he is leaning towards remaining in Likud.

 

Ilan Marciano contributed to this report

 


פרסום ראשון: 11.14.05, 19:51
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