Israel's Labour votes to join govt

Israel's centre-left Labour party voted on Tuesday to join a government being formed by right-winger Benjamin Netanyahu in a major boost for the premier-designate who can now form a broad coalition.

Labour delegates voted 680-507 in favour of a deal that the leader of the party, outgoing Defence Minister Ehud Barak, had reached earlier in the day with Netanyahu, who heads the right-wing Likud party.

The agreement would allow Netanyahu to broaden a coalition that would have otherwise been entirely dependent on support from far-right and religious parties.

"I congratulate you for entering into a unity government at this crucial time," Netanyahu told Barak after the vote.

Greeted with a mixture of cheers and jeers, Barak told a convention before the vote that Israel "needs unity" after last month's tight general election.

"An absolute majority of the citizens want to see us together with the right in the same government," he told delegates.

"I am not afraid of Benjamin Netanyahu, we will not be his figleaf ... We will be a counterweight that will ensure that we do not have a right-wing government," Barak said.

Netanyahu has pushed for as broad a coalition as possible amid concerns that a narrow right-wing alliance would be unable to survive for long in the turbulent world of Israeli politics.

But he has failed to win over the centrist Kadima party of outgoing Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni -- the largest faction in parliament.

Labour -- the once-dominant party that suffered its worst-ever showing in the February 10 election -- should get five ministries, according to the draft accord reached by Netanyahu and Barak.

Barak, Israel's most highly decorated soldier, would keep the defence portfolio.

Barak had initially objected to joining a Netanyahu-led government, but in a stark about-face he argued last week that Labour's participation was in Israel's interests.

Under the agreement, the Netanyahu government platform would include a commitment "to reach a comprehensive regional peace agreement" and respect previous international agreements Israel has signed -- an apparent reference to accords reached with the Palestinians.

It does not commit the cabinet to working towards the creation of a Palestinian state. Netanyahu says the economic situation in the occupied West Bank should be improved before negotiations take place on other issues.

The agreement also states that the government would work against those Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank that Israeli authorities consider illegal.

Netanyahu, a former premier, has until April 3 to form a new government. He has already signed coalition agreements with the ultra-nationalist Yisrael Beitenu and ultra-Orthodox Shas parties.

The agreement with Labour should theoretically give Netanyahu a necessary majority, with from 66 MPs in the 120-seat parliament -- 27 from Likud, 15 from Yisrael Beitenu, 11 from Shas and 13 from Labour.

The party would also head parliament's powerful foreign affairs and defence committee.





Bleier