BARAK BREEZES TO POWER IN ISRAEL; VOTE SIGNALS REVIVAL OF MIDEAST PEACE EFFORT.Byline: Deborah Hastings The New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of Times Israelis overwhelmingly elected Ehud Barak, the Labor Party leader, as prime minister on Monday, rejecting the tumultuous leadership of Benjamin Netanyahu, whose galvanizing galvanizing, process of coating a metal, usually iron or steel, with a protective covering of zinc. Galvanized iron is prepared either by dipping iron, from which rust has been removed by the action of sulfuric acid, into molten zinc so that a thin layer of the zinc character has dominated Israel for three years. In a complete reshuffling of the political deck, Israelis also remade re·made v. Past tense and past participle of remake. their parliament: The right wing withered as the center grew with four new parties, changing the balance of power. Because Barak can now assemble a large block of secular parties, he has the option to form a government without any ultra-Orthodox representation. The ultra-Orthodox appear to have lost their exclusive role as a swing vote between left and right to the Russian immigrants and other centrists. By 3 a.m. today, Barak was leading with 57 percent of the vote to Netanyahu's 42.8 percent, with almost half the votes counted. A highly decorated former general, Barak, 57, is a dovish hawk in the image of his mentor, Yitzhak Rabin, and the vote is a resounding re·sound v. re·sound·ed, re·sound·ing, re·sounds v.intr. 1. To be filled with sound; reverberate: The schoolyard resounded with the laughter of children. 2. call for a revival of the languishing lan·guish intr.v. lan·guished, lan·guish·ing, lan·guish·es 1. To be or become weak or feeble; lose strength or vigor. 2. Israeli-Palestinian peace effort. ``If Yitzhak is looking down on us from where he may, he knows that we together will fulfill his legacy,'' Barak said in his victory speech. ``We need to strengthen our country's security by moving forward to peace agreements.'' Barak also sounded a call for unity. ``It is my intention to be everyone's prime minister,'' he said. ``All of Israel is part of each of us, and we extend a courageous hand to all, to secular and religious, to those of Ashkenazi and of Sephardic background, to those who immigrated from the former Soviet Union and from Ethiopia, to the Arabs, the Bedouins and the Circassians.'' Within 35 minutes of the first television exit polls, before Barak made any public comment, Netanyahu not only conceded defeat, but stepped down as the leader of the conservative Likud Party. Celebrations begin In the West Bank and Gaza, Palestinian officials gloated over the political demise of a leader whom they considered hostile and intransigent. Israeli Radio reported open celebrations in the office of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, who called to congratulate Barak. ``Netanyahu fell into the trash bin of history,'' Fraih Abu Meddien, the Palestinian justice minister said in an interview in Gaza. ``He will be gone forever and good riddance. He's a racist and no other Israeli leader will ever be as bad as he was. The Palestinian people For other uses of "Palestinian", see Definitions of Palestine and Palestinian. Palestinian people (Arabic: الشعب الفلسطيني, were patient for three years through his arrogance. We helped bring him down. We are the ones who made this statue fall.'' Shortly before midnight in Tel Aviv Tel Aviv (tĕl əvēv`), city (1994 pop. 355,200), W central Israel, on the Mediterranean Sea. Oficially named Tel Aviv–Jaffa, it is Israel's commercial, financial, communications, and cultural center and the core of its largest , a huge celebration erupted in Yitzhak Rabin Square, the site of the late prime minister's assassination Assassination See also Murder. assassins Fanatical Moslem sect that smoked hashish and murdered Crusaders (11th—12th centuries). [Islamic Hist.: Brewer Note-Book, 52] Brutus conspirator and assassin of Julius Caesar. [Br. . With mixed emotions, tens of thousands of mostly young Israelis both cheered Barak's victory and lit candles in honor of Rabin, who was assassinated as·sas·si·nate tr.v. as·sas·si·nat·ed, as·sas·si·nat·ing, as·sas·si·nates 1. To murder (a prominent person) by surprise attack, as for political reasons. 2. in 1995. ``Rabin, we have won!'' they shouted repeatedly into the balmy evening air, crying and hugging each other. At the Tel Aviv Hilton Hotel, a few miles away, Netanyahu, a fixture in Israeli politics for 15 years, strode off the political stage quickly, cleanly, and with cordial congratulations to his opponent. Flanked by his wife, Sarah, and by a grim Ariel Sharon, his foreign minister, Netanyahu, with a serene look on his face, addressed weeping supporters. ``The nation decided, and we respect that decision,'' Netanyahu said, stunning his audience, which is unaccustomed to the sight of their prime minister conceding anything. ``That is the way it has to be in a democracy.'' Netanyahu's Likud Party, traditionally one of the two major parties of Israel, suffered from his collapse at the polls. Netanyahu's Likud coalition held 32 seats in 1996, and the party was down to about 20 with slightly fewer than half the votes counted. Defectors join party Many of the defectors left for Shas, the ultra-Orthodox Sephardic party. In a stunning gain, Shas seemed to have garnered six new seats in the new parliament, giving it about 16. This growth spurt growth spurt Pediatrics A period of rapid growth in middle adolescence; ♀ ↑ ±8 cm/yr ±age 12; ♂ ↑ ±10 cm/yr ± age 14; GS is orderly, affecting acral parts–ie, hands and feet grow before proximal regions, came despite the recent criminal conviction on corruption charges of Aryeh Deri, the party's leader, which many religious Sephardic Jews believed was intended to persecute per·se·cute tr.v. per·se·cut·ed, per·se·cut·ing, per·se·cutes 1. To oppress or harass with ill-treatment, especially because of race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, or beliefs. 2. Deri because he is Moroccan-born and ultra-Orthodox. Israelis endorse peace ``We all thank the creator of the world,'' Deri said in Jerusalem, as he sat atop the shoulders of a supporter. ``All those who wanted to step on us - the Lord gave us power today.'' Part of Netanyahu's defeat was not merely a rejection of him, but of the right wing's perceived obstructionist ob·struc·tion·ist n. One who systematically blocks or interrupts a process, especially one who attempts to impede passage of legislation by the use of delaying tactics, such as a filibuster. agenda on the peace effort. Most Israelis not only endorse the peace effort, but accept that a Palestinian state is inevitable. According to a statement from the prime minister's office The Prime Minister's Office is a small department which provides advice to a Prime Minister in some countries:
Also according to the statement, Netanyahu responded, ``Thank you very much, but I'm taking a long vacation.'' CAPTION(S): photo PHOTO Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu concedes defeat to rival Ehud Barak. Ruth Fremson/Associated Press |
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