With Prime Minister Ehud Olmert reaching his final moments in office, he set a deadline for the release of abducted IDF soldier Gilad Shalit for yesterday while his envoys to negotiations with Hamas in Cairo attempt to hammer out the final prisoner swap deal. Hamas originally requested over 1000 soldiers for Shalit and Syrian President Basher al-Assad notified Hamas that they should “soften” their demands.
Likud and Yisrael Beiteinu reached a final coalition deal that would provide the rightist party led by Avigdor Lieberman, Yisrael Beiteinu, five ministerial portfolios. Primarily, Lieberman would receive he foreign ministry as his own, a prospect that may tense relations between Israel and other nations. Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad Malki, upon hearing of the final deal, declared the Likud-led government as “anti-peace”
Meanwhile, elections in the Palestinian Authority are now scheduled for January 26, 2010. Fatah and Hamas agreed to the election date at reconcilliation talks held in Cairo. The date for the elections represented one of the main sticking points in the talks, with proportional representation also marking a primary topic of contention.
Anti-Israel activists in Cairo are attempting to prevent the export of gas to Israel, filing an appeal with the court to overturn a previous ruling permitting the sale.
