Israel Matzav

Ruh Roh... What are Netanyahu and Mofaz not telling us?

The Knesset has now stopped deliberations on Shaul Mofaz's nomination to be Deputy Prime Minister twice due to suspicions of oral agreements between Mofaz and Netanyahu that have not been disclosed. Under Knesset rules, all agreements relating to the makeup of the coalition must be placed before the Knesset before it decides to vote its confidence in the coalition.

Minutes before the Knesset was meant to vote on installing Mofaz as a minister in the new unity government, National Union MK Uri Ariel demanded that any other stipulations to the deal, that may have been reached orally, be clarified, including whether other ministries were offered to Kadima.

Ariel asked Netanyahu if there was an "appendix" to the coalition agreement which offered Kadima ministerial positions.

In a letter he sent to Knesset speaker Reuven Rivlin, Ariel wrote "Unfortunately, there is a great fear that the coalition agreement between Kadima and Likud as it was submitted on the Knesset table does not reveal all the agreements and understandings concerning appointments that were promised to the [Kadima] faction."

Labor MK Isaac Herzog, speaking just after Ariel, demanded that the vote be postponed, asking the prime minister directly if any additional "oral agreements" had been made that were not included in the written deal.

Netanyahu said such items had been discussed, but nothing was signed, understanding that only written and signed agreements needed to be presented at the Knesset on Wednesday.

Knesset speaker Reuven Rivlin suspended the vote, asking the prime minister and any relevant parties to present any such agreements.

National Union is a right-wing party that is part of the opposition. Labor is a center-left party whose leader, Shelly Yachimovich, is about to become opposition leader.

UPDATE 6:44 PM

Mofaz has now been installed by a vote of 71-23. With a coalition of 94 members....

The Knesset installed MK Shual Mofaz as Vice Premier Wednesday by a vote of 71 to 23 following an hour-long break, in which the revelation of a secret oral coalition agreement threatened to derail the deal.

...

Netanyahu said such items had been discussed, but nothing was signed, understanding that only written and signed agreements needed to be presented at the Knesset on Wednesday.

"In negotiations, there are talks about things that might happen in the future," Netanyahu said. "They also involved possibility of ministers."

Speaking after the vote, Ariel said "It turns out that the prime minister speaks the truth, and may God bless him."

"I brought this up because I was told, and I know that Kadima was promised [other] ministries."

Does anyone actually believe there were no backroom deals?

Labels: Binyamin Netanyahu, Israeli Knesset, Shaul Mofaz, Uri Ariel

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 6:22 PM