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Netanyahu wants to be Premier again

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December 11, 2000 

JERUSALEM (AP) — Hours after Prime Minister Ehud Barak resigned on Sunday to run for re-election, his predecessor, Benjamin Netanyahu, declared his own candidacy and called on parliament to pass legislation to allow him to run.

Barak's resignation plunged Israel into a sudden election campaign, and the hard-line Netanyahu quickly took up the challenge — even though it might not be technically possible for him to run. ``I present my candidacy today for prime minister and head of the Likud party,'' Netanyahu said a news conference.

In calling special elections to be held in February, Barak, who lags far behind Netanyahu in opinion polls, took advantage of a law that prevents the former prime minister from running because he is not a member of or candidate for parliament.

Barak's resignation made possible a special election for the prime ministership only. This replaces an earlier plan, which called for general elections that were expected next spring and would have enabled to Netanyahu to run concurrently for parliament and prime minister.

Netanyahu denounced Barak for what he called ``the most cynical trick in the history of the nation.'' He appealed directly to members of parliament, saying, ``Allow the people to choose a new leadership to replace those who have run the situation down.''

Barak will remain in office until the election and was formally re-nominated as the Labor Party candidate only hours after he resigned. Still, he faces a difficult battle to win re-election. Ongoing violence with the Palestinians, which has claimed more than 300 lives, is pushing the Israeli public toward right-wing parties such as Likud.

It's not clear, however, who that party's candidate will be. Current Likud leader Ariel Sharon is running even with Barak in the polls, while Netanyahu, the former party chief, holds a double-digit lead over Barak that has expanded as the violence drags on. Netanyahu criticized Barak's policy of compromise with the Palestinians, charging that he ``broadcast weakness'' and brought more than two months of violence on Israel, referring to Palestinian-Israeli clashes that began Sept. 28.

Without giving specifics, Netanyahu said he could achieve ``cold peace'' with Israel's neighbors, based on mutuality and security. He said that was the best Israel could expect realistically, ``not Scandinavia.''

Netanyahu's term in office from 1996-99 was marked by constant friction with the Palestinians. But his tough policies now appeal to many Israelis, who feel Barak's peace efforts have failed and Israel's security has been jeopardized.

At a rally launching his re-election campaign, Barak said that neither Likud leader had a realistic vision for resolving the half-century-long conflict with the Palestinians.

``The problem of the Likud is not who will be its leader, but that it doesn't have an alternative way or position that can change reality,'' Barak said.

Analysts say Barak, who won a landslide victory over Netanyahu just 18 months ago, must work out some sort peace deal with the Palestinians if he hopes to persuade Israelis to vote for him a second time. Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat said he saw little hope of progress on the peace front during Israel's election campaign.

``Peace talks will stop until the elections are over,'' Arafat said. He also accused Barak of failing to carry out agreements already reached. ``Barak is famous for not implementing what he's signed and wasting time.''

With his grip on power slipping, Barak had reluctantly agreed to hold new national elections, which were expected in about four or five months. But he caught almost everyone in Israel by surprise Saturday night, announcing in a televised speech that he would quit and that elections would be held in two months. Barak formally tendered his resignation to Israeli President Moshe Katsav on Sunday afternoon; the resignation takes effect after 48 hours.

The feud over Netanyahu's candidacy was guaranteed to provoke intense wrangling in parliament, the Knesset. The Likud party said there were at least two ways to get Netanyahu on the ballot.

One would be to change the law for special elections, which requires prime ministerial candidates to be members of parliament.

The second approach would be to dissolve the current parliament and hold new elections on the same date as the prime minister's ballot. Under that scenario, Netanyahu would be allowed to run for both a parliamentary seat and the prime minister's post. Netanyahu said he favored that option.

Sharon said he would welcome a change in the election laws, though that would work against his own ambition to become prime minister. ``My opinion is that we need to allow every citizen, even if he is not a Knesset member, to run in the elections for prime minister,'' Sharon said Sunday.

Even if Barak wins re-election, without a change in the makeup of the Knesset he would probably find it just as difficult to govern and gain support for the peace process.