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Livni push to speed Israel polls Peres sets Israel polls in train
(about 7 hours later)
Israel's Kadima party has submitted a motion calling for the dissolution of parliament after leader Tzipi Livni failed to rebuild the ruling coalition. Israeli President Shimon Peres has told the parliament that there is no chance of forming a government, setting the country on the road to elections.
The party, whose former leader resigned amid corruption allegations, says it wants a general election in early 2009. It comes a day after Tzipi Livni, the head of the largest party, Kadima, said she had failed to form a coalition.
The proposed bill seeks to bypass a 21-day waiting period in which another party could try to form a government. Foreign Minister Ms Livni was voted leader of the centrist party after outgoing PM Ehud Olmert stepped down amid corruption investigations.
Latest polls showed Kadima two seats ahead of rival opposition party Likud led by right-winger Binyamin Netanyahu. General elections are now expected in or close to February 2009.
Ms Livni, currently foreign minister, was voted leader of the centrist Kadima party, the largest in the Knesset, after outgoing Prime Minister Ehud Olmert announced his resignation. The parliament, known as the Knesset, has up to 21 days during which any of its members could, with the backing of 61 of the parliament's 120 MKs, attempt to form a coalition.
But she failed to strike deals with enough smaller parties to form a stable coalition. The Knesset and the political system must examine itself with a critical eye President Shimon Peres But correspondents say it is highly unlikely anyone will do this successfully. Elections will then be called within 90 days.
On Sunday, she announced she would rather go to fresh elections than give in to "extortion" by potential coalition partners. Earlier on Monday, Kadima submitted a motion calling for parliament to vote to dissolve itself in a move seeking to bypass the 21-day waiting period and bring elections forward.
Tough battle But Mr Peres's announcement means the three-week period will now stand.
"It is important to hold elections within the shortest period allowable by law in order to reduce uncertainties, given the serious political, economic and security challenges Israel faces," said Kadima spokesman Shmulik Dahan. The next parliamentary poll had been scheduled for 2010.
Mr Olmert, who remains prime minister in a caretaker role until a new government is formed, is due to address the Knesset at the opening of its winter session later on Monday. Party platform
WHAT HAPPENS NEXT President Peres has three days for further consultationIf those talks fails, other MPs have three weeks to form coalitionPeres can then call election to be held within 90 daysPoll likely in late February or MarchBill to dissolve Knesset could possible by-pass three week waiting period class="" href="/1/hi/world/middle_east/7691761.stm">Tzipi Livni's snap election gambit class="" href="/1/hi/world/middle_east/7613137.stm">Q&A: Israel's road to elections Opening the Knesset's winter session, Mr Peres warned that public trust in political leaders had waned:
The next parliamentary poll had been scheduled for 2010, but if the Knesset does vote to dissolve itself, polls could be held in late January 2009. "At this time the Knesset and the political system must examine itself with a critical eye. We must not allow this unpleasant truth to be hidden. It's never too late to fix things," he said.
Some analysts are predicting - if there is not a majority in the Knesset for dissolution - that President Shimon Peres might set the clock ticking for elections to be held in mid-February. Mr Olmert said he intended to remain prime minister in his current caretaker role until a new government was formed after the expected polls.
Opinion polls suggest Ms Livni would face a tough fight in an early election against the Mr Netanyahu's centre-right Likud party. Developments could open the way for right-wing leader Binyamin NetanyahuHe said Ms Livni "made an honourable attempt to form a government".
But although Mr Netanyahu was well ahead in July when Mr Olmert announced his plans to step down, Ms Livni has narrowed the gap since then. Binyamin Netanyahu, leader of the Likud party, which is neck-and-neck with Kadima in the polls, used the event to outline his party's centre-right platform.
A poll by the Dahaf Research Institute, conducted on Sunday, projected the Kadima party's number of seats unchanged at 29, slightly ahead of Likud on 26, up from 12 in the current Knesset. He said that if he became prime minister, he would seek peace with neighbouring countries, but stressed he would not give up the Golan Heights or negotiate over the division of Jerusalem.
As foreign minister, Ms Livni had been heading negotiations with the Palestinians, but they have effectively ground to a halt. Mr Olmert's government has been involved in indirect talks with Syria over a deal widely thought to involve returning the Golan Heights, occupied in the 1967 Israeli-Arab war.
On Sunday, chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat told the BBC that if Israelis were to choose to hold elections, no significant talks could take place before then. The status of Jerusalem was one of the issues that Ms Livni's talks with the religious party Shas broke down over.
US President George W Bush had hoped to have a Middle East peace deal by the time he leaves office in January. The party, often a crucial kingmaker in Israeli governing coalitions, is strongly opposed to negotiating on the status of the city.
Israel sees Jerusalem as its eternal, undivided capital, but the Palestinians want to locate the capital of a future state in the east of the city.
As foreign minister, Ms Livni had been heading talks with the Palestinians, but negotiations have effectively ground to a halt.
Details of the talks have not been made public, but correspondents say that peace negotiations are meaningless unless the issue of Jerusalem is at least on the table.
Ms Livni is thought likely to face a tough battle against Mr Netanyahu in the expected election.
But although he was well ahead in July when Mr Olmert announced his plans to step down, Ms Livni has since narrowed the gap.
A poll by the Dahaf Research Institute, conducted on Sunday, projected the Kadima party's number of seats unchanged at 29, slightly ahead of Likud on 26 - which is a massive predicted gain from the opposition party's 12 seats in the current Knesset.