Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Israel's New Government

http://www.cnn.com/2013/01/23/world/meast/israel-elections/index.html?hpt=wo_c2

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his right-wing party, victors of Tuesday's national elections but chastened over the rise of centrist challengers, heard the voters' populist voices loud and clear. Netanyahu announced Wednesday three top priorities straight from the playbook of a new and surprising centrist rival, Yair Lapid, as he starts to pursue the formation of a new government. 
They are: increasing equality in the burden on the public, seen as a reference to the practice, unpopular among secularists, of giving military exemptions to the ultra-Orthodox; the grinding issue of affordable housing; and changing what many see as Israel's "ineffective" system of government.

These happen to be major planks of Lapid's upstart party, Yesh Atid, which surprisingly came in second in Tuesday's elections to Netanyahu's Likud Beitenu party. And they are messages hammered home by others in the center and on the left.

In addition to security and diplomatic responsibilities, Netanyahu said, these three principles will be the focus in the formation of Israel's new government.
"We awoke this morning after the election with a clear message from the public," Netanyahu said. "We want to put together the widest possible government that will bring these changes to the nation and people of Israel."
No single party in Israel ever gets a parliamentary majority of more than 60 seats, so parties must rely on coalition-building. The question is whether Netanyahu will stay on the right or move to the center in political jockeying over government formation.
Netanyahu's statement indicates that he might try to attract centrists into a government coalition rather than form a hard-right bloc.
Their presence could mean a greater focus on addressing economic ills. It could also usher in a more amenable stance toward pursuing peace negotiations with Palestinians, a stance that would be embraced by the United States.
The Labor party, like Lapid, stressed domestic problems, while the new party Hatnua, led by former Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, focused on peace talks.

How can they embrace peace?

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