Israeli Rivals Share Hawkish Views on Iran, Hamas

Will it be hawkish Kadima leader Tzipi Livni, or really hawkish Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu? The foreign policy of these two prospective coalition leaders may be different around the edges, but on the most serious issues, it simply won't matter much. Both ran...

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Netanyahu Leading ‘Winner’ Livni to Head Govt

The quest for a coalition government in Israel could take weeks after yesterday's elections left Tzipi Livni's Kadima Party with a narrow lead in the number of seats but a very difficult path to forming a coalition. While both Kadima and rival Likud were celebrating...

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No Party Breaks 23 Percent in Israeli Election

With 100% of the ballots counted, the ruling Kadima Party has retained the largest number of seats in Israel's Knesset, with 28. Likud came in a close second with 27 (despite leading in virtually every poll in the past few weeks), and Yisrael Beiteinu finished third...

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Livni Edges Bibi, but May Not Get to Form Govt

Israel's elections are over, and the counting of ballots has begun. The early exit polls show a very narrow gap between the Likud Party and the Kadima Party, with Kadima surprisingly taking a narrow lead in each of the results. Channel 1 and Channel 10 both give...

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Netanyahu: Lieberman Won’t Be Defense Minister

Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu says he "will approach all the Zionist parties to join a coalition headed by Likud," but has indicated that Avigdor Lieberman, head of the surging Yisrael Beiteinu party, will not be the defense minister in his prospective coalition...

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The Strange Bedfellows of Israeli Politics

Israel's Channel 2 sent a reporter to the Haifa rally for the surging Yisrael Beiteinu party of Avigdor Lieberman. The reporter, Forat Nassar, was turned away. The reason: because he's an Arab, and they're persona non-grata for a party whose sky-rocketing popularity...

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Landmark Israeli Election Begins

At midnight tonight EST, Israelis begin casting their ballots for the next Knesset (parliament). The Likud Party's wide lead of recent weeks has narrowed considerably (on the back of a major surge in the popularity of Yisrael Beiteinu), but leader Benjamin Netanyahu...

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