Olmert Calls Emergency Meeting

JERUSALEM (AP) – Prime Minister Ehud Olmert called an emergency meeting of his Cabinet Wednesday in a feverish attempt to hold on to power, urging his rivals to “slow down” before trying to reap political capital from a scathing report on his handling of last year’s war against Hezbollah guerrillas in Lebanon.This week’s report has fueled a growing chorus of calls for Mr. Olmert’s resignation, including from members of his coalition government. A top lawmaker in Mr. Olmert’s Kadima Party became the highest-ranking official to urge Mr. Olmert to step down, and party officials said Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, a party heavyweight, would follow suit later in the day.The 34-day war has been widely perceived as a failure. Monday’s report said Mr. Olmert bore ultimate responsibility, accusing him of poor judgment, hasty decision making and lack of vision.A defiant Mr. Olmert opened the special Cabinet session by hinting that reports of his political demise were premature.“To those who are eager to take advantage of this report to reap certain political advantages, I suggest ‘slow down,'” he said in comments broadcast on Israeli media.Two new polls published in Israeli newspapers Wednesday said some two-thirds of Israelis want Mr. Olmert to resign immediately. The surveys indicated that the hawkish former prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu of the opposition Likud Party, would likely win handily if new elections were held.Since the report was issued, Mr. Olmert has been scrambling to hold his coalition together. One minister from the Labor Party, the junior coalition partner, already has quit, and there have been increasing signs of eroding support within Kadima.In a new blow to Mr. Olmert, the chairman of Kadima’s parliamentary faction, Avigdor Yitzhaki, called for the prime minister to step down.“In order for Kadima to return to being a legitimate ruling party and for the sake of the prime minister and for the sake of the entire country, I think the prime minister has to resign,” he told Israel Radio. “He has to take this responsibility and resign.”Mr. Yitzhaki said if Mr. Olmert failed to do so immediately he would resign his post as chairman of his coalition. On Tuesday, another Kadima lawmaker, Marina Solodkin, also urged Mr. Olmert to step down.But Mr. Livni, the foreign minister, was emerging as the biggest threat to Mr. Olmert’s survival. Mr. Livni, who has stayed silent since the explosive report was released, is Kadima’s most popular politician and may be seen as the party’s best hope of retaining power. Mr. Livni’s aides said she planned to meet with Mr. Olmert later Wednesday.

Olmert Calls Emergency Meeting

Olmert Calls Emergency Meeting

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