Israel's Olmert Faces Tough Tasks Now
After declaring victory in Israeli elections, acting Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's Kadima Party said Wednesday it would quickly form a broad ruling coalition that will pull out of much of the West Bank and draw Israel's borders by 2010.
But CBS News correspondent Robert Berger (audio) says that may be easier said than done.
Olmert's Kadima party won fewer seats than expected, just 28 in the 120-member parliament. So Olmert may have to form a government with some right-wing parties which are lukewarm to the pullout.
The Israeli right wing is reeling, however. The Likud party, led by hawkish former prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, plunged to just 11 seats, and the right may not be able to block the pullout.
In other developments after the election:
Haim Ramon, a senior Kadima lawmaker, said the party is confident it will get broad backing and have a government in place after the Jewish holiday of Passover, which begins in mid-April. "I believe we will have more than 70 legislators who will support the disengagement plan," Ramon told Israel Radio, referring to the expected West Bank pullout.
Kadima officials said informal coalition talks have already begun.
Israel's ceremonial president, Moshe Katsav, said he will start talking to party leaders next week about forming a coalition. Traditionally, the Israeli president gives the nod to the leader of the largest party to try to form a government. "I assume there will be a stable government," Katsav told Israel Army Radio.
Declaring victory early Wednesday, Olmert renewed his call for peace talks with the Palestinians and said he is prepared to make painful compromises, such as uprooting some Jewish settlements in the West Bank.
"In the coming period, we will move to set the final borders of the state of Israel, a Jewish state with a Jewish majority," Olmert said.
He said Israel would seek an agreement with the Palestinians, but act on its own if it can't reach peace.
Many Israelis are looking forward to withdrawing from portions of the West Bank.
"I'm prepared to give up territory," Israeli voter Alexa Neville told Berger (audio). "I think when Israel won the Six Day War in '67, it never intended to hold on to whole chunks of territory. I think we have absolutely no right to control the lives of people who do not want to be controlled by us."
Former Palestinian legislator Sabri Saddam called setting the borders unilaterally — without negotiation — a land grab that won't bring peace.
"And I don't see the wall, the settlements and the expansion of these settlements as a solution to this problem," Saddam said.
Hamas, whose new government, which rejects peace talks, was sworn into office Wednesday, rejected the unilateral approach. "Olmert's statement is a clear threat," said Nasser Ashar, Hamas' deputy prime minister. "He has his own plan, and he wants to implement it, whether we accept it or not."
The moderate Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas, urged Olmert to return to the negotiating table. "We want negotiations and not to dictate unilateral solutions," he said in Khartoum, Sudan, where he was attending an Arab Summit.
Other summit participants voiced similar calls. "It is absolutely out of the question to accept ... unilateral withdrawals according to Israeli whims," said Amr Moussa, secretary-general of the Arab League.
Otherwise, it really wasn't a memorable meeting, reports CBS News' Edward Yeranian (audio).
Final results are expected Friday, officials said. But for the first time since its found in 1948, Israel will not be led by Labor or Likud. The results showed voters turning away from conventional parties to an assortment of third parties.
Among them were Shas, a party catering to Orthodox Jews of Middle Eastern origin that won 13 seats; Yisrael Beitenu, a Russian immigrants' party that wants to redraw Israel's map by transferring Arab towns to Palestinian control, with 12 seats; and the new Pensioners' Party, which won seven seats.
"The Big Bang," said the headline in Israel's two largest dailies, referring to the new political shake-up. The aftermath will likely be a period of difficult negotiations and potential coalition partners.
Olmert has said he would govern only with parties that accept his program.
Kadima officials said likely partners include Labor, which ran on a social platform advocating a higher minimum wage and guaranteed pensions for the elderly; the Pensioners' Party, which also wants more benefits for retirees, Shas and a second Orthodox party.
The dovish Meretz party could also join the coalition, and Olmert could also receive tacit support from Arab parties that won 10 seats.
Tuesday's vote was billed as a referendum on Olmert's withdrawal plan, and analysts said Kadima's lackluster performance could hinder — but not prevent — his ability to push forward.
"It will take a while to massage the partners into willingness to hear about very costly and independent, unilateral moves," said Asher Arian, a senior fellow at the Israel Democracy Institute, a Jerusalem think tank.