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Israel's Olmert Tries to Persuade Peretz to Accept Lieberman in
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Coalition
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?r=279&c=664774&l=1009&ctl=148C7EB:A6F02AD83191E160DFDD4CC2884C5DE09574F7DCC14957C0 Reports say Prime
Minister Ehud Olmert offered Defense Minister Amir Peretz several
incentives to remain in government during meeting Tuesday night





Ehud Olmert (file photo)Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is to meet
with Defense Minister Amir Peretz Wednesday to discuss the proposed
appointment of an ultra-nationalist politician to the Cabinet.

Mr. Olmert is trying to persuade Peretz to keep his leftist Labor
Party in an expanded coalition that would include far-right leader
Avigdor Lieberman and his Yisrael Beitenu (Israel Our Home) party.







Avigdor Lieberman (file photo)The Labor Party is divided on whether to
accept Lieberman as a coalition partner. Some Labor ministers say the
party should object because of what they say are Lieberman's extreme
anti-Arab views. But, other Labor ministers favor staying in the
coalition to maintain political stability.

Israeli media report that Mr. Olmert offered Peretz several incentives
to remain in the government during a meeting Tuesday night. Peretz
said later he would not announce a decision until after a meeting of
Labor's central committee on Sunday.

Lieberman's party calls for annexing Israeli settlements in the West
Bank and excluding Israeli Arabs towns from Israel's final borders.
Labor objects to stripping Israeli Arabs of their citizenship.

Under the coalition deal with Mr. Olmert, Lieberman would become a
deputy prime minister in charge of monitoring strategic threats facing
Israel. Lieberman says he would focus on Iran, which he calls the
primary threat.

The addition of Lieberman's party would expand the ruling coalition
from 67 to 78 seats in the Israeli parliament. His party is mostly
made up of Russian immigrants.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP.


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