JERUSALEM Ñ Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is preparing to replace his defense minister in
wake of the collapse of the national unity government.
Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer announced the resignation of his
Labor Party from Sharon's government. The
resignation of all of the Labor ministers in the Cabinet was announced on
Wednesday evening and will take effect on late Friday.
Sharon, who said he will seek to maintain a coalition majority without
the Labor Party, plans to appoint former Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Shaul Mofaz
as defense minister. Mofaz resigned from his military post in June and his
administration of the Israeli war against the Palestinians often angered
Ben-Eliezer, Middle East Newsline reported.
Ben-Eliezer, who trails in the polls for Labor Party leadership
elections scheduled for Nov. 19, has expressed increasing skepticism over
the Israeli military campaign against the Palestinian Authority. The defense
minister has rejected appeals by military commanders for greater use of
force and concluded that the war against the Palestinians has entered a
stalemate.
In contrast, Mofaz, as chief of staff, had constantly pressed
Ben-Eliezer and Sharon to increase military pressure on the Palestinians.
Mofaz pressed the prime minister to launch Operation Defensive Shield in
April in which Israel's military conquered major West Bank cities from the
PA.
"The prime minister sees Shaul Mofaz as a worthy candidate [for chief of
staff]," Cabinet secretary Gideon Saar said on Thursday.
[On Thursday, Israeli military sources reported a fresh alert on
Palestinian attempts to carry out suicide missions in Israel. The sources
said 12 suspected Palestinian insurgents were captured in the northern West
Bank and four homes were destroyed in the Jenin area.]
The Labor Party resigned from the government over a dispute regarding
the state budget. Ben-Eliezer and Sharon had negotiated all night and much
of Wednesday but could not agree on Labor's demand for additional funds for
social welfare programs.
The Knesset passed the budget by a vote of 67-45 on its first reading.
The budget will undergo two other votes until it is passed.
For his part, Ben-Eliezer suggested that the Labor Party's departure
from the Sharon government would not harm Israel's national security. The
outgoing defense minister said he did not expect a U.S. war against Iraq for
several months.
Aides said Sharon plans to retain the post of foreign minister, which
had been held by Labor's Shimon Peres. Peres has rejected an offer by Sharon
to remain in the government.
