Sunday morning's Jerusalem Post and Ha'aretz are reporting Livni's inability to produce a coalition. She will report to President Peres this afternoon that no government could be formed and that elections will be held in mid-February 2009. Livni is livid.
Tough words with little weight since the loyal opposition, led by Netanyahu, will undoubtedly sweep the field. Israelis are tired of the Kadima white flag policy, especially towards Jerusalem. In fact, in the mayoral elections that hotly pit religious candidates against secular ones solely on the basis of theology, ALL agree that a divided Jerusalem is out of the question.
Apparently the election has attracted large numbers of Israeli Arabs living in East Jerusalem--so much so that today's Post carries a related story that the PA chief Islamic judge issued a fatwa banning Israeli Arabs in East Jerusalem from voting in the mayoral elections.
The fact is that the new government will have to return to the table; but, it will be with a very different mandate than the Kadima express. Moreover, with uncertainty over what shape US foreign policy will take, to say nothing of the possibility of renewed violence with Hamas when the rickety ceasefire period ends next month, Israelis are feeling more bunkered than before. This is not the time, most feel, to give away anything, much less Jerusalem.
Of course, this will not be the picture that the pollsters will sell. But Israelis are shopworn of biased samples with virtual landslide predictions that ultimately reveal a vastly different picture of reality. Israelis also expect that rate of US spin doctors stirring the election reality pot will vary in intensity by which candidate wins the US elections.
It is important to remember that the cultural icon of Israel is Masada--a lone "city" on the hill where a handful of Zealots stood against elite Roman Legionaires. Olive Branches? That crop is tilled by the enemy and they want everything and give nothing in return.
"I'm sick of this extortion," Livni was quoted as telling her advisers. "We'll see all these heroes in 90 days."Atta girl! You tell 'em.
Tough words with little weight since the loyal opposition, led by Netanyahu, will undoubtedly sweep the field. Israelis are tired of the Kadima white flag policy, especially towards Jerusalem. In fact, in the mayoral elections that hotly pit religious candidates against secular ones solely on the basis of theology, ALL agree that a divided Jerusalem is out of the question.
Apparently the election has attracted large numbers of Israeli Arabs living in East Jerusalem--so much so that today's Post carries a related story that the PA chief Islamic judge issued a fatwa banning Israeli Arabs in East Jerusalem from voting in the mayoral elections.
The Palestinian Authority's chief Islamic judge, Sheikh Tayseer Tamimi, published a fatwa on Saturday banning Arab residents of Jerusalem from participating in the upcoming municipal election.Meddling in Israeli elections--shocking.
In a separate development, the chairman of the Supreme Islamic Council in Jerusalem, Sheikh Ikrima Sabri, renewed the fatwa barring Palestinians from selling property to Jews. He also warned Arab Jerusalemites against resorting to Israeli courts to settle disputes over real estate, out of fear that their homes and lands might end up in Jewish hands.
Although the PA has previously urged Jerusalem Arabs to boycott the municipal election, this is the first time the chief Islamic judge issued such a fatwa.
The last-minute appeal to boycott the elections came as three of the four mayoral candidates - Meir Porush, Nir Barkat and Arkadi Gaydamak - were recruiting supporters in the city's Arab neighborhoods.Warn them about what? Voting their economic interest or getting their posterior kicked in some dark alley by loyalist thugs.
The three have also been holding low-profile rallies in some Arab neighborhoods with the hope of persuading residents to vote.
Alarmed by these activities, the PA leadership in Ramallah decided to warn Arab voters against casting ballots.
The fact is that the new government will have to return to the table; but, it will be with a very different mandate than the Kadima express. Moreover, with uncertainty over what shape US foreign policy will take, to say nothing of the possibility of renewed violence with Hamas when the rickety ceasefire period ends next month, Israelis are feeling more bunkered than before. This is not the time, most feel, to give away anything, much less Jerusalem.
Of course, this will not be the picture that the pollsters will sell. But Israelis are shopworn of biased samples with virtual landslide predictions that ultimately reveal a vastly different picture of reality. Israelis also expect that rate of US spin doctors stirring the election reality pot will vary in intensity by which candidate wins the US elections.It is important to remember that the cultural icon of Israel is Masada--a lone "city" on the hill where a handful of Zealots stood against elite Roman Legionaires. Olive Branches? That crop is tilled by the enemy and they want everything and give nothing in return.
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