President Shimon Peres may urge Kadima and Likud to form a coaltiongovernment, he alluded to high school students in Be’er Sheva by stating his desire to ‘listen to the people.’ During the speech, he notd that upon receiving the official election results Wednesday nights, he would begin stressing coalition building for the next government. While the likely Likud-led next government may result in increased disagreement with the Obama Administration, some Israeli officials may also complain about their U.S. counterparts and increased pressure from them. Furhter, due to the lack of clarity following last week’s elections, the Israelis began doubting the efficacy of the country’s electoral process.
The Israel-Hamas truce deal, the details of which remain obfuscated by contradicting reports, will likely include the return of abducted IDF soldier Gilad Shalit for approximately 1000 Palestinian prisoners, althogh Israeli officials cowed that some of the released inmates would not return to the West Bank or Gaza Strip, instead forced into exile in either Lebanon or Syria. However, Egyptian Intelligence Chief and potential Mubarak successor Omar Suleiman opposed permitting Israel to force exile on any released prisoners.
The Civil Administration, in charge of managing land in the West Bank, approved the expansion of the city of Efrat amidst Palestinian protests and legal appeals. However, the town will begin seeking development rights, for which multiple bureaucratic agencies must approve, after the assumption of the next government.
An Israeli survey found that a majority of the nation’s employees prefer wage cuts as opposed to the lay-off of coworkers in order to cut costs during the global economic crisis.
