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Peretz: Everybody wants to profit at my expense
Tensions remain between Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Defense Minister Amir Peretz following telephone conversation between latter, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. In response to Olmert's office accusations, calls to resign from within Labor, Peretz says will not quit
The verbal duel between Peretz and Olmert continued Monday night when Olmert’s people pointed the finger at Peretz yet again.
Olmert’s aides blamed Peretz for not consulting with the prime minister before contacting Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to discuss an end to the Qassam rockets being fired towards Israel from the Gaza Strip.
“He sat across him at the government meeting, knowing he was going to speak to Abu Mazen, and didn’t report it to Olmert or consult with him on what to say on Israel’s behalf,” a senior official in the prime ministers office claimed.
The same official explained that following a telephone conversation with Abbas, Peretz asked Olmert if Israel was willing to accept a two-sided ceasefire.
“Olmert told him ‘You know there are constant contacts between people in my office and Abu Mazen, even your office and people at the foreign ministry are involved. Don’t fall for it, they (Palestinians) are trying to drive a wedge between us’,” the official said.
Olmert’s officials made the claim that Peretz made the move out of political motives that served his party (Labor).
Officials in Peretz’s office on the other hand said that the confrontation between the two was unnecessary, dishonorable, and irrelevant.
“It was just a phone call with Abu Mazen initiated by the Palestinian Chairman, and in coordination with MK Mohammad Barakeh. Those types of things have happened in the past, and will happen in the future.”
However, Peret’z office reassured that it was clear to everyone, and in particular to the defense minister, that negotiations with the Palestinian Authority were run by the prime minister.
“Peretz isn’t running diplomatic negotiations, he hasn’t met with Abu Mazen and doesn’t intend on meeting with him before the prime minister. Peretz has his own perception. His only goal is to advance a ceasefire,” officials said.
Some Labor officials said that the call to Abbas may indeed contribute to the party chairman's standing, saying that as long as he was leading a diplomatic process that falls in line with the Labor's stance, it would be hard to come out against him.
position in the party are still failing to yield the desired results. Most of the Labor faction members admit that their chairman should not continue to serve as defense minister.
Simultaneously to the decline in Peretz's status, Former Prime Minister Ehud Barak has begun making gains among party members, and many think of him as a good candidate to replace Peretz as defense minister.
Nevertheless, in the meantime it appears that Peretz has no plans to resign, and that he will fight for his position.
Attila Somfalvi contributed to the report
