Knesset

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Netanyahu's Long Tenure Officially Over in Israel

Naftali Bennett will be sworn in Monday morning

(Newser) - Benjamin Netanyahu is leaving office after 12 straight years, 15 years total. Naftali Bennett's coalition government survived—barely—a confidence vote Sunday, the New York Times reports. The Knesset, Israel's parliament, was closely split, with a 60-59 majority favoring Bennett, who will be sworn in as prime minister...

Vote Is a Clear Defeat for Netanyahu

Prime minister lacks a majority to form a government, making another election possible

(Newser) - Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his right-wing allies fell short of winning a parliamentary majority in Israel's latest election, according to a final vote count released Thursday, leaving a political deadlock that put the longtime leader's political future in question. The fourth election in just two years brought...

Israel Passes Controversial 'Jewish Nation' Law

Arabs say they are being sidelined

(Newser) - Israel's parliament approved a controversial piece of legislation on Thursday that defines the country as the nation-state of the Jewish people but which critics warn sidelines minorities. The government says the bill, which passed the Knesset by a 62-55 vote, will merely enshrine into law Israel's existing character....

As Sharon Lies in State, Israel Bids a Tricky Farewell

Public, political rivals pay respects ahead of funeral tomorrow

(Newser) - Israelis are filing through the Knesset Plaza today to pay their respects to Ariel Sharon, who died yesterday after being in a coma since 2005, as the former prime minister's coffin lies in state today ahead of a military funeral tomorrow. "My heart is broken. Israel lost the...

Tzipi Livni Forms Party for Next Israel Elections

Former foreign minister emphasizes peace efforts

(Newser) - On the heels of Ehud Barak's stunning resignation , a familiar face is re-entering Israel's political fray. Former foreign minister Tzipi Livni is forming a new party, dubbed the Movement, to give voice to "people who do not have anyone to vote for," the BBC reports. Her...

Glenn Beck Gives Pep Talk to Israeli Parliament

Says US media 'skewed' on Israel

(Newser) - Glenn Beck spoke before an adoring crowd at the Israeli parliament today, telling them to forcefully state their case in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. “In America, the media is so skewed on Israel,” Beck said, according to CNN . “Honestly, I thought you can only cook your food over...

Israeli Race Neck and Neck
 Israeli Race Neck and Neck 
Feb 10, 2009 7:11 AM CST

Israeli Race Neck and Neck

(Newser) - Today's parliamentary elections in Israel are still too close to call, with polls showing foreign minister Tzipi Livni locked in a statistical dead heat with hardliner Benjamin Netanyahu, reports Reuters. Centrist Livni closed in on the right-winger's lead following Israel's 22-day incursion into Gaza.

Fight Over Holocaust Victims' Assets Rocks Israel

Mission to trace assets of murdered Jews facing resistance from Israeli government, businesses

(Newser) - The quest to return assets of Holocaust victims to their heirs, instigated by the Israeli parliament, is now focusing on Israel itself, the Wall Street Journal reports, and it's meeting as much resistance at home as it did in Europe. Many European Jews invested in what was then Palestine during...

Israel's 'Mrs Clean' Has Quite a Mess to Tackle

But Livni faces uphill climb if she becomes prime minister

(Newser) - When she cast her ballot yesterday, Tzipi Livni took a page from Barack Obama and told the Israeli media that party members should "bring about change by voting for what you believe in." Now, writes an analyst in the Jerusalem Post, Israel's prime minister-designate has a tough job:...

Israelis: Olmert Successor Is Unlikely to Forge Coalition

Netanyahu calls for snap elections

(Newser) - Benjamin Netanyahu has called for a snap election after Ehud Olmert's sudden announcement that he will resign as Israel's PM. Riding high in the polls, the head of Likud said that "it doesn't matter who heads Kadima. They are all partners in this government's total failure." The call...

Olmert Pact Saves Israeli Parliament

Deal means PM will face leadership challenge this fall

(Newser) - Ehud Olmert narrowly averted the collapse of the Israeli government today by pledging that his party would hold a leadership election by late September, Haaretz reports. In exchange, Labor Party withdrew its support for a motion of non-confidence. Olmert is facing investigation in connection with $150,000 he took from...

Bush vs. Obama: It's Just the Start
 Bush vs. Obama:
 It's Just the Start  
analysis
May 15, 2008 7:45 PM CDT

Bush vs. Obama: It's Just the Start

Expect more disputes between them in the general election

(Newser) - When the president set off a political firestorm today by essentially likening Barack Obama to those who appeased the Nazis, he likely presaged a common theme in the general election, writes Massimo Calabresi in Time. Bush is trying to stay relevant—no better way than to inject himself in the...

Bush: Obama Would 'Appease' Terrorists

Obama: Bush 'politics of fear' haven't made US or Israel safer

(Newser) - He didn't name names, but he didn't need to. President Bush used an appearance before Israel’s Knesset today to accuse Barack Obama of the “foolish delusion” that “we should negotiate with terrorists and radicals.” In comments aimed at Obama’s support among American Jews, CNN notes,...

I Took Cash, No Bribes: Olmert

Vows to resign if indicted

(Newser) - Ehud Olmert resisted calls for his resignation today, after admitting on national TV last night that he accepted contributions from a New York businessman—but denying that any of it was a bribe. Olmert, under criminal investigation for allegedly taking hundreds of thousands of dollars from Long Island millionaire Morris...

Merkel Addresses Knesset
Merkel Addresses Knesset
Mar 18, 2008 4:40 PM CDT

Merkel Addresses Knesset

German chancellor speaks to lawmakers of Holocaust 'shame'

(Newser) - Angela Merkel addressed the Knesset today, speaking to Israel's parliament about Germany's shame over the Holocaust. "I bow to the victims. I bow to all those who helped the survivors," said the chancellor. Five MPs boycotted to protest the speaking of German in the legislative chamber, but Merkel...

Merkel Holds Cabinet Meeting in Jerusalem

German celebrates Israeli statehood with 3-day trip

(Newser) - When Angela Merkel holds her weekly cabinet meeting today, it will meet not in Berlin but in Jerusalem—a special gesture to mark the 60th anniversary of Israeli statehood. Only a few decades ago Israelis marched in protest when the country welcomed its first German ambassador, but now the chancellor...

Israel: Land of Milk and Honeys
Israel: Land of Milk and Honeys
Jun 21, 2007 8:01 AM CDT

Israel: Land of Milk and Honeys

Maxim flap exposes Jerusalem's risque pitch

(Newser) - As if it didn't have anything else to do, the Israeli parliament is embroiled in a flap over an American skin mag. Maxim is about to publish an article on "the Women of the Israel Defense Force," featuring the Hebrew hotties in stages of undress some back home...

Israel's Parliament Elects Peres President

83-year-old former PM vows to unite country

(Newser) - The Knesset voted in Vice Premier Shimon Peres as president of Israel today, after his two rivals for the office dropped out. Peres, a former PM and Nobel laureate, says his job is to unite Israeli society and "expel despair from our midst." He follows Moshe Katsav, who...

Deputy PM Wants Olmert Out
Deputy PM Wants Olmert Out
May 3, 2007 7:02 AM CDT

Deputy PM Wants Olmert Out

(Newser) - Israel's foreign minister has called on Ehud Olmert to resign, the highest ranking Kadima party official to call for his ouster. Tzipi Livni, who also serves as deputy prime minister, says she's prepared to stand to replace Olmert in the wake of the damning Winograd report. But the majority of...

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