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Date: Fri, 04 Jun 2004 14:43:09 +0200
To: arutz-7@israelnationalnews.com, dailyreport@israelnationalnews.com
Subject: Arutz-7 News Brief: Friday, June 4, 2004
From: Arutz-7 Editor <feedback@israelnationalnews.com>

Arutz Sheva News Service
<http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com>
Friday, June 4, 2004 / Sivan 15, 5764
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TODAY'S HEADLINES:
1. LIEBERMAN: SHARON FIRED ME BECAUSE I DISAGREED WITH HIM
2. NRP EXPECTED TO QUIT
3. THE THREE SCENARIOS
4. OTHER REACTIONS

1. LIEBERMAN: SHARON FIRED ME BECAUSE I DISAGREED WITH HIM

Transportation Minister Avigdor Lieberman received his letter of dismissal around 11 AM today, while his colleague Tourism Minister Benny Elon, as of noon, had not yet received his. The dismissals of the National Union party ministers are to come into effect immediately before Prime Minister Ariel Sharon presents his withdrawal/expulsion plan for a Cabinet vote.

Sharon said last night that he was going to fire the two, in the knowledge that this was the only way his plan would pass a Cabinet vote. With their firing, 11 ministers now support the plan - Sharon himself, as well as Olmert, Mofaz, Livni, Sheetrit, Ezra and the five Shinui Party ministers - while 10 object: Netanyahu, Livnat, Shalom, Naveh, HaNegbi, Sharansky, Landau, Katz, and the two NRP ministers.

Sharon's disengagement plan includes a unilateral retreat from Gaza and the northern Shomron, the expulsion of over 8,000 Jews from their homes, and the abandonment of the areas to terrorist control. Sharon insists that the plan provides the only hope for Israel's future security.

Within the Likud, eight ministers oppose the plan, while only six support it. Minister Lieberman noted that it was peculiar that Sharon had chosen to fire ministers of another party, "when actually the problem is within his own party."

"This will be the first time," Lieberman said today, "that a minister is fired not because he didn't do his job, and not because he acted in opposition to the government - but only because he doesn't agree with the Prime Minister! Is a minister not allowed to express his opinion? This shows Sharon's weakness and his inability to persuade his own ministers. And then he tries to shrug off his failures on to the National Union party, which shows his lack of ability to make correct decisions. He has made mistake after mistake, including in the diplomatic sphere: first the Road Map, which failed; then he tried to build on Abu Mazen, and this failed; then the Tenenbaum deal, with all its weird results; then the Likud referendum; then this plan, where he failed to receive a majority in the Cabinet. Instead of accepting the fact that he was unable to convince his government, he goes and fires ministers in order to obtain an artificial majority!"

Housing Minister Effie Eitam of the National Religious Party said that Sharon's firing of Elon and Lieberman is an "immoral and undemocratic act."

2. NRP EXPECTED TO QUIT

Last-minute contacts have already begun in an effort to find a compromise that will enable Prime Minister Sharon to withdraw his dismissal letters to the National Union ministers. If these efforts fail, however, the NRP is expected to resign from the government very soon after the Cabinet vote.

Over the course of the past two days, several government ministers met intensively to try to draft a compromise - and progress was admittedly very slow, if at all. Welfare Minister Zevulun Orlev led those within the NRP who supported the compromise proposal that might have enabled the NRP to remain within the government. Suddenly last night, however, the efforts were circumvented by Sharon's refusal to accept the continued transfer of some funding to the Jewish towns in Gaza. Sharon then declared on television that he planned to fire Elon and Lieberman. Orlev said afterwards that he feels that Sharon tricked him, and that the "carpet was removed from under my feet." He is still not certain that the NRP must quit the coalition, however.

MK Sha'ul Yahalom (NRP) told Voice of Israel today, "We are approaching a situation that is closer to a dictatorship than to a democracy. To fire ministers because they don't agree with him is totally non-democratic! Let's imagine, for instance, that Sharon would decide to declare war on Afghanistan, and finds, in a secret poll of the ministers, that he has the support of only three. Is it conceivable that he would then fire the other 20 ministers and say that the Government of Israel voted to go to war on Afghanistan?!"

Yahalom explained what was the "final straw" that caused the compromise negotiations to blow up yesterday: "We demanded the removal of the clause freezing all funding to the Gaza towns, because what's the difference whether a bulldozer tears down the town or if the town is choked to death by not providing it with money for kindergartens, schools and municipal salaries?"

3. THE THREE SCENARIOS

Assuming the Cabinet passes the withdrawal/expulsion plan on Sunday or Monday, and assuming that the NRP quits soon afterwards, three scenarios present themselves: Labor joins the government; new elections; Netanyahu replaces Sharon.

The Labor Party is divided over whether to join a Sharon-led government. Party leader Shimon Peres, as well as MKs Binyamin Ben-Eliezer and Chaim Ramon are in favor, while MKs Amram Mitzna, Avraham Burg and Ophir Pines have expressed opposition. Many in the Likud object to Labor's inclusion in the coalition, and will vote against it, thus that this option is unlikely, at least in the short term.

Prime Minister Sharon can also ask the Knesset to vote to dissolve itself, thus leading to new elections in three months' time. In such a case, it is possible that the Likud will break up into two parties, one of which Sharon might take with him to form a new secular-centrist party. However, most commentators assume that it is not likely that a majority of Knesset Members, many of whom are in their first term in office, will vote to give up their chairs.

A third possibility is that Sharon will be toppled in a no-confidence motion, thus forcing his resignation. This can only occur if 61 MKs of the religious and/or right-wing parties decide to support Netanyahu to take his place.

4. OTHER REACTIONS

Former Labor Party leader MK Amram Mitzna - who was defeated by Sharon in the last election largely for proposing the same Gaza withdrawal plan that Sharon is now promoting - remains opposed to joining the government coalition. Mitzna said today that by firing the National Union ministers, Prime Minister Sharon has boxed himself into a corner with no way out. Like other Labor MKs, however, Mitzna says that Labor should provide Sharon with a "security net" and not vote no-confidence in him - on condition that the disengagement plan is not watered down.

Likud MK Yuli Edelstein said that firing the two ministers was a "grave error" that will result in significant hardships in maintaining a viable functioning coalition. He said that it could force the nation into early elections.

MK Ya'ir Peretz (Shas) stated that Sharon's firing of the ministers was done with the knowledge that Labor leader Peres favors entering the government. He added that Shas will wait and watch developments. Peretz believes that Sharon would not want a coalition without at least one Sabbath-observant party, and that Shas will be first on line if the NRP leaves.

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Date: Mon, 07 Jun 2004 16:13:34 +0200
To: arutz-7@israelnationalnews.com, dailyreport@israelnationalnews.com
Subject: Arutz-7 News: Monday, June 7, 2004
From: Arutz-7 Editor <feedback@israelnationalnews.com>

Arutz Sheva News Service
<http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com>
Monday, June 7, 2004 / Sivan 18, 5764
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TODAY'S HEADLINES:
1. THE GOVERNMENT VOTED: ISRAEL INTENDS TO UPROOT 25 JEWISH COMMUNITIES
2. ANALYZING THE AGREEMENT
3. THE DAY THE CABINET VOTED TO LEAVE GUSH KATIF AND NORTHERN SHOMRON
4. SEARING QUESTIONS FACE NRP

1. THE GOVERNMENT VOTED: ISRAEL INTENDS TO UPROOT 25 JEWISH COMMUNITIES

Yesterday's political drama ended somewhat anti-climactically, with the Cabinet approving a watered-down version of the disengagement plan. Although the withdrawal is not scheduled to be voted on before March 2005, the Prime Minister said yesterday, "The disengagement process has begun. Today, the Government decided that it is Israel's intention to relocate all Israeli settlements in the Gaza Strip and four settlements in Samaria by the end of 2005."

Under the terms of the compromise proposal patiently hammered out by Minister Tzippy Livny, the Cabinet confirmed an amended disengagement plan, specifying, "this does not include the dismantling of Jewish communities." The next several months will be marked by "preparatory work," as detailed in "Appendix III." After this work is completed, the government will "again convene to decide on whether or not to dismantle communities, which ones and at what rate, depending on the circumstances at the time." The 25 communities will be divided into four groups, and separate votes are to be held on each group, assumedly at separate times.

Appendix III states that during the "preparations period," all municipal and other services in the communities slated for destruction will continue in the communities as before, except that no new building permits will be issued. An exceptions committee will be established that will be "authorized to unfreeze frozen plans and to freeze construction that has already been started - each case according to its own merits and the standards that will be determined." The committee will be headed by the Director of the Prime Minister's Bureau, with the participation of the Directors of the Finance and Justice Ministries.

Ministers Netanyahu, Livnat and Shalom agreed to vote for the plan because of several "improvements" that were inserted. It does not state that the government "is obligated" to evacuate the Jewish towns, but rather "intends" to do so; it does not include specific dates; and the "letters of understanding" exchanged between Sharon and US President Bush - which refer to the destruction of all 25 communities (21 in Gaza and four in northern Shomron) at once, as opposed to in four phases - are not "included" in the plan but are rather "exhibited."

Voting in favor were: Sharon, Netanyahu, Livnat, Shalom, Mofaz, Olmert, Livny, Sheetrit, Ezra and the five Shinui Party ministers.

Among the seven who voted against were the two NRP ministers, as well as five of the Likud: Minister without Portfolio Uzi Landau, Health Minister Naveh, Public Security Minister HaNegbi, Diaspora Affairs Minister Sharansky, and Agriculture Minister Yisrael Katz. Landau was rumored to be considering resigning this afternoon, but later said that this was not true.

After the vote, many ministers showed visible signs of relief and even joy, and some of them even embraced. This sparked an outburst by Minister Eitam of the NRP: "The government is decreeing the fate of thousands of Jews, and the ministers are not embarrassed to rejoice?!  ... This plan leads directly to the expulsion of thousands of Jews, and the creation of a Hamas state on a platter of Jewish blood," he declared.

2. ANALYZING THE AGREEMENT

The "compromise" nature of the newly approved disengagement plan enables all the sides to read into it their own interpretations.  Arutz-7's Yosef Meiri notes that this is apparently why several apparently conflicting declarations in the Cabinet resolution don't appear to bother either side. The reference is to the opening declaration that the "government hereby approves an amended disengagement plan," followed by, "This decision does not indicate the dismantling of communities."

Neither is either of the above seen to be contradicted by Clause 3.1, which states, "The State of Israel will evacuate the communities in the Gaza Strip, and will redeploy outside the area of the Strip." In this vein, Clause 3.2 states, "The State of Israel will evacuate an area in the northern Shomron (Ganim, Kadim, Sa-Nur and Chomesh), and will redeploy outside this area" - and 3.3 reads, "The intention is to complete the planned evacuation process by the end of 2005."

Arutz-7's Haggai Huberman notes, however, that some of the more practical clauses are somewhat more unambiguous. "Government programs for construction and development that have not yet been undertaken will not be started" means, for instance, that if an extra kindergarten or classroom is needed, it will not be built. "Is there a clearer sign of the suffocation of a town than that?" Huberman asks.

He notes that although an "exceptions committee" will be formed, "it will work both ways. It is empowered not only to enable not-yet started buildings to be built, but also to stop buildings in the middle. The committee is headed by Sharon's man, and one of its other two is a representative of Tommy Lapid - so it's not hard to imagine how its decisions will go."

The current plan is an improvement, Meiri adds, in the following two points: The original version called for a ban on all construction permits, whereas now only government-funded projects are automatically banned. In addition, the "exceptions committee" was originally slated to deal only with freezing building starts already underway, whereas now its mandate is also to unfreeze some projects that have not yet started.

3. THE DAY THE CABINET VOTED TO LEAVE GUSH KATIF AND NORTHERN SHOMRON

Yesterday's Cabinet decision was accompanied by three separate, but related, dramatic controversies that unfolded in the course of the day. The first was the firing of the two National Union ministers, Benny Elon and Avigdor Lieberman. Lieberman received his letter on Friday, such that by Sunday morning he was no longer a Cabinet member. Elon, however, did not accept his until Saturday night - he spent the Sabbath at a secret location - and therefore claimed throughout the day that he was still a minister and eligible to vote. "I will do everything I can to make it harder for Sharon to pass this evil plan," Elon said. "I am ashamed that we have reached this stage, that a democratic country acts like a non-democratic country - firing an entire party just to create an artificial majority. And if he still doesn't have a majority, what will he do, fire three more ministers? ... My vote could be the deciding one, and many voters chose me for this specific and critical moment."

During the course of the day, four petitions were submitted to the Supreme Court against the dismissals, and Supreme Court Chief Justice Edmond Levy even proposed that Sharon postpone the Cabinet session in order to head off the "humiliation" of a restraining order against him. "What was the logic in firing these ministers in such a panic?" Judge Levy asked. Sharon, however, called his bluff, and Levy in fact backed down, refusing to order a restraining order and instead setting a hearing for a later date. Once Elon saw that the Supreme Court had not provided him with "legal relief," he acknowledged that he was fired, and set off for his Tourism Ministry office to remove his belongings.

At the same time, intensive efforts were underway to find a compromise disengagement proposal that Ministers Netanyahu, Shalom and Livnat could agree to. At stake was the "unity of the Likud," according to some of the ministers involved - implying that if Sharon were to propose a full disengagement proposal, the three would vote against it, likely leading to a full-fledged anti-Sharon revolution within the Likud. In the end, the compromise was found, and it passed by a very comfortable 14-7 margin. Ironically, the dismissal of Elon and Lieberman turned out to be unnecessary, as their votes would not have made a difference - and in any event, they would likely have resigned on their own after the vote.

The third drama continues today as well, and it concerns the position of - and possible split in - the National Religious Party; see separate story below.

4. SEARING QUESTIONS FACE NRP

The National Religious Party faces a dramatic and difficult decision this week: whether to remain in or leave the government coalition.  Party leader Housing Minister Effie Eitam and Welfare Minister Zevulun Orlev are on opposing sides of the issue. Both voted against the plan in the Cabinet yesterday, of course, but there their paths parted.

Minister Eitam says, in accordance with the position of Rabbis Shapira and Eliyahu, that a party that stands for Torah ideals cannot remain in a government that is headed to uproot Jewish communities from the Land of Israel. MK Yitzchak Levy and possibly MK Nissan Slomiansky agree with him. Minister Orlev, however, says that a decision must be made from the "head, not from the gut," and that a) there remain many months before even one community is to be dismantled, if at all, and b) the NRP has other battles to fight, such as religion and state, funding for religious education, preventing the formation of a left-wing secular government, and the like. MKs Sha'ul Yahalom and Gila Finkelstein agree with Orlev.

At stake is the future of the current coalition. If the NRP leaves, Sharon will remain with the support of only 55 MKs - 40 of the Likud and 15 of Shinui. He will then turn to Labor, which is divided over the issue of whether to join, and the entry of which will turn many Likud MKs against Sharon. His first test will come later this afternoon, with the proposal of several no-confidence motions in the government. Labor - except for its new Am Echad faction - has announced that it will not vote against the government, while the NRP is wavering.

MK Levy said today that the NRP will not have genuine power within the government - "Sharon will throw us out like he did with the National Union and replace us with Labor the moment we make him too much trouble" - and must therefore quit now: "Sharon does everything without the government - he went to Bush without the government, Weisglass exchanged letters with Bush without the government, and then when he finally needed the government and he didn't have a majority, he threw out the National Union. He'll do the same now: for nine months he'll do what he wants, and when it comes up for a Cabinet vote, he'll throw us out."

MK Yahalom said, "The stupidest thing we can do now is to leave, because the minute we do, Labor will crawl in, and that will be the end of Gush Katif. In a month from now, if we see that this plan is really taking shape, we can leave then... Nine months from now [when the plan is scheduled to be executed] is an eternity in Israeli politics. Anything can happen."

The six MKs convened yesterday, and again today, to try and resolve the issue. They met with Rabbis Eliyahu and Shapira, who suggested that they continue to discuss the issue among themselves, and then return to consult with them [the rabbis] later. It is far from clear if all the MKs will see themselves as bound by whatever decision is reached. MK Levy said that it could be that the party will leave the coalition in "two stages."

Finance Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, anxious to ensure that the NRP remains in the government so as not to pave the way for Labor's entry, is meeting this afternoon with Rabbis Eliyahu and Shapira in the latter's home. He is trying to convince the rabbis of the importance of keeping the NRP in the government coalition.

The final decision must be made, or ratified, by the party's Central Committee.

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Date: Tue, 08 Jun 2004 16:16:54 +0200
To: arutz-7@israelnationalnews.com, dailyreport@israelnationalnews.com
Subject: Arutz-7 News: Tuesday, June 8, 2004
From: Arutz-7 Editor <feedback@israelnationalnews.com>

Arutz Sheva News Service
<http://www.IsraelNationalNews.com>
Tuesday, June 8, 2004 / Sivan 19, 5764
------------------------------------------------

TODAY'S HEADLINES:
1. EITAM AND LEVY TO QUIT GOVERNMENT
2. THE NRP'S BIBI: OUT NOW!
3. PM SURVIVES YESTERDAY AND TODAY, BUT FACES ANOTHER CHALLENGE ON THURSDAY

1. EITAM AND LEVY TO QUIT GOVERNMENT
Following a long and stormy session of MKs and leading figures of the National Religious Party today, party leader Housing Minister Effie Eitam and Deputy Minister Yitzchak Levy decided to quit the government coalition. Welfare Minister Zevulun Orlev and the other three MKs hope to remain in the coalition, at least for the near future.

Under the terms of a tense compromise worked out this afternoon, Eitam and Levy will resign - but will not immediately join the opposition.  Party leaders will continue to convene over the course of the next few days to try to find a way to prevent a split in the party.

Rabbi Mordechai Eliyahu wrote a personal letter this morning to Eitam and Rabbi Levy - the two who specifically asked for his opinion - instructing them to quit the coalition immediately. Rabbi Eliyahu and Rabbi Avraham Shapira, who served together as Israel's Chief Rabbis between 1983 and 1993, are considered the NRP's leading spiritual authorities.

Rabbi Eliyahu wrote today,

"In response to your [plural] question, I hereby express 'Torah opinion' that no person has the right - neither the Prime Minister nor the government itself - to uproot a Jewish settlement in the Land of Israel, and most certainly not to give away any portion of the Land to a foreign element. Following the resolution of Sivan 17, 5763, in which the government declares that in any final-status arrangement, communities will be uprooted and Gush Katif will be 'clean of Jews,' one must not remain partners in such a government, and I hereby instruct you to resign at once from the government and the coalition...

Fears of a split in the NRP were palpable throughout the day, and are now closer than ever to coming true. MK Nissan Slomiansky, the party's Knesset faction whip, proposed a compromise yesterday according to which the NRP would remain in the government for another three months, in order to monitor Sharon's intentions vis-a-vis the withdrawal from Gaza.

Eitam and Levy did not accept this wait-and-see approach, and are of the opinion that withdrawal preparations will continue apace despite the NRP's objections. They were apparently vindicated by Trade Minister Ehud Olmert's announcement today that he would evacuate all the Israeli factories and plants in the Erez Crossing in northern Gaza, and relocate them in cities in the Negev.

Minister Orlev and MK Slomiansky were visibly upset by the results of the meeting, while MK Yahalom would better be described as enraged:  "Whoever leaves the government now depletes our party's strength in the government, and we will not be able to fight against the decision to uproot the settlements. This is a stab in the back of the settlement enterprise." (See ex-MK Yigal Bibi's response below)

Welfare Minister Orlev said, "I am greatly saddened by this decision, but I have not given up hope of trying to find a way to maintain party unity. We have called a time-out until this coming Monday, in an attempt to bridge over the differences."

The three or four remaining MKs of the NRP - Slomiansky is still unsure - will try to remain in the coalition, at least for the short term - if Prime Minister Sharon allows them.

The National Religious Party suffered a mini-split in its ranks in 1997 when then-MK Chanan Porat and MK Tzvi Hendel quit the party to help form Tekumah, one of the components of the National Union party. Porat, who said today that he is a "loyal son of the Religious Zionist movement," recommends that the NRP quit the government immediately.  Asked if he does not fear the immediate entry of Labor into the government in place of the NRP, Porat said,

"On the contrary: the NRP's departure will lead to unrest within the Likud and will hasten the crumbling of this unfortunate government."

Dr. Amnon Shapira of the NRP's Central Committee represents those in the NRP who feel that rabbis should not make critical political decisions. He feels that the party should not quit the government until "there is no longer a reasonable chance that we can have an influence on the events."

Likud leaders such as Finance Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and coalition whip MK Gideon Saar have made efforts to prevent the NRP from leaving the coalition. Many Likud MKs fear the Labor Party's entry into the coalition in place of the NRP.

2. THE NRP'S BIBI: OUT NOW!

Yigal Bibi, a former MK of the National Religious Party, told Arutz-7 last night that it his opinion that the party must leave the government. "In general, the rabbis do not intervene in the party's day-to-day affairs," Bibi said, "but the current matter of dismantling communities is a very serious and weighty affair, one that requires the wisdom and impartiality of Torah scholars... At our Knesset faction meeting yesterday, I said that if we ask the rabbis, we must adhere to their ruling - and if we don't listen, this can explain why we only have six Knesset seats..."

"The truth is," Mr. Bibi continued, "that if it were only this issue, then maybe we could have lived with it. But the fact is that the NRP should have quit a while ago, as all the religious services in Israel have been ruined, salaries aren't being paid to the yeshiva rabbis, the yeshivot are in deep financial straits..."

Arutz-7's Amatzia HaEitan said, "The other side in the NRP says that Labor would love nothing better than to get the NRP out of the government, and that if the NRP leaves, it will not be able to do anything in the matter of Gush Katif, yeshivot or anything else against the left-wing secular government that will be formed."

Bibi responded, "There is something to be said for this position, but in my 15 years of Knesset experience, I don't think that a coalition of 61 MKs will have much of a chance to survive... So what will happen is that we will prop up Sharon for a few months while he prepares to carry out the withdrawal, and then when we and some Likud MKs object, he'll bring Labor in to help him finish off the process. If we leave now, however, I am convinced that this government will fall..."

3. PM SURVIVES YESTERDAY AND TODAY, BUT FACES ANOTHER CHALLENGE ON THURSDAY

The government of Ariel Sharon survived a no-confidence vote yesterday, as Labor decided to abstain. The vote was 46 in favor and 31 against; 61 MKs are required in order to pass a no-confidence motion, a number that would have been obtained had the 15 abstaining Labor MKs voted in favor. By abstaining, Labor, the leader of the opposition camp, signaled not only its satisfaction with the disengagement plan the Cabinet passed on Sunday, but also its apparent hopes of joining the government sometime in the future.

In protest of this non-oppositionary behavior, the smaller opposition parties, led by Shas, withdrew their signatures from a Labor-initiated demand that Sharon deliver a diplomatic address today. The speech would have had to be voted on, thus that the Prime Minister was saved from a potentially embarrassing incident in which some of his own Likud party colleagues might have voted against him.

In the meantime, the Knesset will vote on Wednesday on an Arab party-initiated bill to dissolve the Knesset. On paper, the opposition numbers only 59 MKs at present, such that the Knesset is expected to survive the vote, but last-minute changes are possible.

The anti-withdrawal forces in the Likud Party convened yesterday in the office of Minister Uzi Landau. Among the participants were Minister Natan Sharansky, Deputy Minister Michael Ratzon, and MKs David Levy, Ehud Yatom, Yuli Edelstein, Moshe Kachlon, Michael Gorolovsky, Ayoub Kara, and Yechiel Chazan. Other Likud MKs are known to object to the withdrawal as well.

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