Wednesday, January 09, 2008

Yisrael Beiteinu threatens to resign from coalition

From Ynet News, 8/1/08, by Roni Sofer:

If prime minister launches talks on core issues we'll leave government by end of this week, says Tourism Minister Yitzhak Aharonovitch; Minister for Strategic Affairs Avigdor Lieberman still waiting for clarifications from Olmert

If the prime minister launches talks on the core issues we will be out of this government by the end of the week, Tourism Minister Yitzhak Aharonovitch (Yisrael Beiteinu) told Ynet on Tuesday evening.

Aharonovitch's remarks were made on the backdrop of the refusal of his party's leader, Minister for Strategic Affairs Avigdor Lieberman, to announce that the faction would leave the coalition in light of the agreement reached between Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to jumpstart the discussions on the core issues, including Jerusalem's status.

Lieberman announced earlier that he was waiting for a clarification talk with the prime minister on the matter.... Earlier this week, Lieberman said that "any start of negotiation on the core issues, any attempt to evacuate settlements and outposts, obligates us to immediately withdraw from the coalition."

According to his fellow faction member, Minister Aharonovitch, "We have made it clear to the prime minister that we believe some problems come before a discussion of the core issues. "Aren't we being struck by terror from the north and south? Have the Palestinians met their commitment to fight terror? These issues should be dealt with before any discussion on the core of conflict.

"We are going out. If the prime minister wants to take us out of the coalition, this is his chance. The moment the talks on these issues begin, we are out," he concluded.

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