Yisrael Beiteinu

Yisrael Beiteinu
ישראל ביתנו‎
Leader Avigdor Lieberman
Founded 1999
Headquarters Jerusalem, Israel
Ideology Revisionist Zionism[1][2][3]
Economic liberalism[4][5]
Secularism
National conservatism
Russian speakers' interests[6]
Right-wing populism[7]
Political position Right-wing[5][8][9][10][11]
Knesset
5 / 120
Most MKs 15 (2009)
Election symbol
ל
Website
www.beytenu.org

Yisrael Beiteinu (Hebrew: יִשְׂרָאֵל בֵּיתֵנוּ‎, lit. Israel Our Home) is a secularist and right-wing nationalist political party in Israel. The party's base has traditionally been secular, Russian-speaking Israelis. The party describes itself as "a national movement with the clear vision to follow in the bold path of Zev Jabotinsky",[1] the founder of Revisionist Zionism. It primarily represents immigrants from the former Soviet Union.[12] Although it has attempted to expand its appeal to more established Israelis,[13] it has not been successful, and most of its voters are Russian-speaking.[14] It takes a strong line towards the peace process and the integration of Israeli Arabs, characterized by its 2009 election slogan "No loyalty, no citizenship".[15] Its main platform includes a recognition of the two-state solution, the creation of a Palestinian state that would include an exchange of some largely Arab-inhabited parts of Israel for largely Jewish-inhabited parts of the West Bank.[16] The party maintains an anti-clerical mantle and encourages socio-economic opportunities for new immigrants, in conjunction with efforts to increase Jewish immigration. In the 2009 election the party won 15 seats, its most to date, making it the third largest party in the previous Knesset.[17] In the 2015 election, the party won six seats.

History

Avigdor Lieberman, Minister of Defence
Anastassia Michaeli
Orly Levi, Deputy Speaker of the Knesset
Uzi Landau, Minister of Energy and Water Resources
Yitzhak Aharonovich, Minister of Internal Security

Yisrael Beiteinu was formed by Avigdor Lieberman to create a platform for Russian immigrants who support a hard line in negotiations with the Palestinian Authority. Lieberman's actions were motivated by the concessions granted by his former boss, Benjamin Netanyahu (when he was director-general of the Likud) to the Palestinian Authority in the 1997 Wye River Memorandum, featuring the division of the West Bank city of Hebron. One of the partners in Netanyahu's coalition was Yisrael BaAliyah, a new immigrants' list led by Natan Sharansky that also had right-of-center leanings. After Lieberman left Likud, he registered great disappointment when Sharansky did not pull out of the coalition, as did two of Sharansky's colleagues in Yisrael BaAliyah, Michael Nudelman and Yuri Stern, both of whom broke away to form Aliyah.

For the 1999 elections, Lieberman, Nudelman and Stern formed Yisrael Beiteinu, and the new party won four seats. On 1 February 2000 the party joined an alliance with the National Union,[18] itself an alliance of right-wing parties led by Binyamin Elon. In the 2003 elections the joint list won seven seats, with Yisrael Beiteinu being given four of them. The alliance joined Ariel Sharon's government and Lieberman was made Minister of Transport. However, the party left the government on 6 June 2004,[19] in response to the disengagement plan. On 1 February 2006, shortly before the elections that year, the party split from National Union in order to run alone in the elections.[18]

The election results saw the party increase in strength to eleven seats. Although it remained outside Ehud Olmert's government formed in May 2006, it joined the coalition in October 2006. The party was involved in a controversy in January 2007 after Labor Party leader Amir Peretz nominated Raleb Majadele for the position of Minister of Science and Technology, thereby making him Israel's first Muslim Arab minister.[20] Lieberman condemned the nomination and called for Peretz's resignation, accusing him of harming Israel's security by ceding to "internal rivalries" within the Labor party, while Peretz accused Yisrael Beiteinu of being a racist party.[21] Yisrael Beiteinu's member of Knesset (MK) Esterina Tartman referred to Peretz's decision as a "lethal blow to Zionism", adding that Majadale's presence in the cabinet would damage "Israel's character as a Jewish state"[20] and that "We need to destroy this affliction from within ourselves. God willing, God will come to our help." Tartman's comments were immediately condemned as racist by other MKs.[22]

In January 2008 the party left the government in protest against talks with the Palestinian National Authority, saying certain issues negotiated were not to be tolerated.[23] Lieberman pulled out of the government and left his position as Minister of Strategic Affairs,[23] and almost immediately afterwards, Arutz Sheva reported that an investigation against Lieberman and his daughter that had been "ongoing for years, suddenly became active again once he left the government last week".[24]

On 22 December 2008, Lieberman approved the party's list for the 2009 elections. New names in the top ten include Orly Levy (daughter of former Likud MK David Levy) and Anastasia Michaeli, two former models and current television hosts. Knesset members Yosef Shagal and Tartman failed to make the list.[25] The results of the election saw the party win 15 seats, making it the third largest after Kadima (28) and Likud (27). In March 2009, Yisrael Beiteinu joined Binyamin Netanyahu's coalition and party leader Avigdor Lieberman became Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister, while the party received four other ministerial portfolios, and one deputy minister post.[26]

On 25 October 2012, Lieberman and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that Yisrael Beiteinu and Likud would run together on a single ballot in Israel's 22 January 2013 general elections. "In view of the challenges we're facing, we need responsibility on a national level ... We're providing a true alternative, and an opportunity for the citizens to stabilize leadership and government," Lieberman said.[27]

Organization

The supreme body in the party is the party conference, which convenes every four years. The party members elect party office-holders including the members of the party arbitration panel, the permanent commission, the municipal commission, and the comptroller.

Yisrael Beiteinu runs for local elections under the name of the city that they run in, e.g. Petah Tikva Beiteinu ("Petah Tikva Our Home").

Policies

Relations with Israeli Arabs and Palestinians

One of the party's main policies is that of drawing the borders in such a way that areas with large Arab populations, such as the Triangle area and the Wadi Ara, both gained by Israel as part of the 1949 Armistice Agreements, would be transferred to Arab sovereignty. Known as the Lieberman Plan, such an arrangement would mean that the majority of Jews would live in Israel and the majority of Arabs would live in a future Palestinian state. In most cases there is no physical population transfer or demolition of houses, but creating a new border where none existed before, according to demographics.[28]

United Nations General Assembly Resolution 55/153, written in 2001, explicitly states: "When part of the territory of a state is transferred by that state to another state, the successor state shall attribute its nationality to the persons concerned who have their habitual residence in the transferred territory and the predecessor state shall withdraw its nationality from such persons," and Lieberman claims that this means Israel can legally transfer territory and citizens as a means of peace and ultimate conflict resolution.[28]

Avigdor Lieberman argues that the Arab residents see themselves not as Israelis but as Palestinians, and should therefore be encouraged to join the Palestinian Authority. Lieberman has presented this proposal as part of a potential peace deal aimed at establishing two separate national entities, one for Jews in Israel and the other for Arabs in Palestine. However, he is known to have an affinity for and is popular among the Druze population (the only Arabic-speaking male population to be fully drafted into the IDF), and has attracted a number of Druze voters, including some in the Golan Heights who voted for the party in protest.[29] Druze candidate Hamad Amar was elected to the Knesset on the party's list in 2009.[30]

Regarding Palestinian statehood, Lieberman has said that he supports the creation of "a viable Palestinian state".[31]

Internal Security Minister Yitzhak Aharonovitch proposed to use "administrative detention against those carrying out so-called 'price tag' attacks". This was in reference to Jewish extremists perpetrating hate crimes against Arabs.[32]

Nakba Day reform

Yisrael Beiteinu was instrumental in passing a law that would fine bodies that receive state funding being spent in recognition of Nakba Day, and events that call for the end of Israel as a Jewish State.[33][34]

The Iranian nuclear program

Yisrael Beiteinu has taken a strong stance against the growth and development of the Iranian nuclear program. Lieberman has made clear that "there are no illusions as to the Iranians' intentions regarding their military nuclear program," after meeting U.S. Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano in Jerusalem. Lieberman and the party have worked hard and collaborated with many world leaders in order to keep the issue at the top of the global agenda and to increase international pressure. "I do not believe the international community is under any illusions regarding Iran's willingness to give up its nuclear program," Lieberman said.[35]

Government reform

A long-time and current standing goal of the party has been government reform. Yisrael Beiteinu, since its inception, has called for the separation of the legislative and executive branches to increase accountability and uniformity within government. Danny Ayalon, Deputy Foreign Minister, MK, and former international party chair, explained the party's call for reform; "In Israel, there is no sufficient separation of powers. Around a third of the Knesset members serve as ministers or deputy ministers and are thus forbidden to introduce laws or participate in committees. There are few apposite checks and balances, in fact, farcically, the opposite is true; as an MK, I am expected to conduct oversight of my role as Deputy Foreign Minister."[36] Between an impending nuclear Iran and the rising cost of living within Israel proper, Yisrael Beiteinu has been committed to finding a solution within the Knesset that will allow for action to be taken. "The people want change, and are sick and tired of all the wheeling and dealing within the coalition that is necessary to pass the simplest of laws," Ayalon further explains.[37]

The Norwegian Law

As the party seeks to increase governability, it supports the passage of the Norwegian Law, that will require MKs to resign their seats when appointed a ministerial position and be replaced by another party member.[38][39]

Relations with Gaza

Yisrael Beiteinu advocates "the complete cutting of ties with Gaza and its separation from the West Bank".[38]

Religion and state

Yisrael Beiteinu does not advocate a separation of religion and state, but rather seeks to moderate the Israeli rabbinate. Following an attempt to delegitimize the conversion of soldiers that were made through the authority of the army's chief rabbi, MKs David Rotem and Robert Ilatov led the party in the passing of a bill that formally legalized the conversions.[40]

The party is also working to make marriage easier for secular Israelis by working to pass the Tzohar Law. The new law will end the restriction of Jewish couples to be wedded only by the rabbi of their locale, permitting them to choose any recognized rabbi in the country to perform their marriage. This is intended to help the couple to avoid the often burdensome bureaucracy associated with the marriage process.[41]

Conversion Bill

Yisrael Beiteinu, particularly MK David Rotem, has promoted reforming the Law of Return, which would undertake the following measures:

The Conversion Bill has been heavily criticized by various religious groups in both Israel and other countries; Shas and United Torah Judaism initially balked at the bill due to perceived contradictions against Jewish law, but eventually reached a compromise.[43] Conservative, Reform, and Reconstructionist movement heavily objected against the bill's further centering of religious power in the hands of the Orthodox Chief Rabbinate of Israel, discriminating against converts to Progressive Judaism and potentially alienating non-Orthodox Jews in the Jewish diaspora.

Other policies

MK Lia Shemtov is known for her opposition to the Israeli welfare-to-work plan (known as the "Wisconsin Plan"), along with the rest of the party.

The party also supports increasing the police force, improving education, easing conversions, and secular/non-religious civil unions.[44] The last two points are particularly popular with the Russian immigrant community who vote heavily for the party. These items angered some of the religious parties, such as Shas, with Shas's Rabbi Ovadia Yossef claiming that "Whoever votes for Lieberman gives strength to Satan", and claims that the party is a danger to religious matters in Israel.[45] While the party as a whole does not advocate the separation of religion and state, the local chapters generally push for measures that the religious public opposes, such as public transportation on Saturdays and the ability to sell pork (which is treif and haram) in general stores.

Yisrael Beiteinu does not take an official stance on same-sex marriage, but 80% of its voters back its passage.[46]

Perception

A number of mainstream media sources, within and outside of Israel, have labelled the party, and Lieberman, as right-wing, and even far-right or ultra nationalist, including Fox News,[47][48] BBC News,[49] The Telegraph,[50][51] The Guardian,[52][53][54] Haaretz,[55] The Jerusalem Post,[56] The New York Times,[57] The Times (London),[58] France 24,[59] Newsweek,[60] NPR,[61] and Xinhua News Agency.[62] At the same time, however, the party does recognize a two-state solution, and it is a secular party, with some of its particular religious policies described as "ultra-liberal".[63] These positions are contradictory to the tradition of both nationalistic and religious right wing politics in Israel. Some have called the party and its leader a "hard-line" or "self-styled" populist, including Newsweek,[60] The Telegraph,[64] The Guardian,[65] Reuters,[66] and Time.[67]

While various Arab and world media and politicians accused the party and its leader of being a fascist and racist,[68][69][70][71][72] a number of Israeli media and politicians tend to disagree,[73][74][75] and some even offered praise on occasion. For example, Kadima's Minister of Finance Roni Bar-On said "It's a Jewish party, Zionist and serious."[76] The party phenomenon was explained by Gershom Gorenberg:[77]

Lieberman is not a right-winger, because he's talking about giving up land. In fact, he's even willing to give up land from sovereign Israel. [..] I think one of the reasons people say Lieberman is in the center is that they don't realize he has, in effect, redefined the terms.

In a February 2009 opinion piece[78] considered to be directed at the Obama administration, Avigdor Lieberman stated that Yisrael Beiteinu was neither far-right, nor ultra-nationalist.[79]

Yehuda Ben-Meir wrote in the Haaretz that he did not and would not ever vote for Lieberman. He also criticized the delegitimizing and demonizing of both the right and the left:

Lieberman is neither a racist nor a fascist, and depicting him as such does an injustice to his voters and harm to Israel.

What's racist is denying the Jewish people a state of their own. Certain Arab Knesset members talk incessantly about the Palestinian people's rights, including their own state. But in the same breath they refuse to acknowledge Israel as the state of the Jewish people and deny the very existence of a Jewish people as a nation with national rights...

Just as we must condemn right wingers' attempts to cast doubt over the patriotism of Yossi Beilin and his fellow subscribers to the Geneva Initiative – provocative as this plan might be to most Israelis – we must condemn the left's lamentable habit of denigrating Lieberman. The idea to change the state's borders in a peace agreement may not be practical or implementable in our circumstances, but we cannot deny its legitimacy and sense. And in any case, it has nothing to do with racism. Lieberman has said publicly that he supports the principle of establishing a Palestinian state.[80]

According to Time, many Russian immigrants are attracted to the ideas of Lieberman's party. It also notes that analysts say that at this time "the dreary prospects for peace, and recent terrorist attacks inflicted by Israeli Arabs" have contributed to Lieberman's popularity among other segments of Israeli society.[81]

Criticism

Yisrael Beiteinu and its plan have many vehement critics from the left and the right in Israel.

Despite its support for increased Jewish immigration (aliyah) and settlement expansion, Yisrael Beiteinu's platform is based in part on the creation of a Palestinian state adjacent to Israel, and thus has alienated much of the religious right-wing settlement movement, which refuses to acknowledge Palestinian claims to any of the 'Land of Israel'.

Yisrael Beiteinu has drawn equally strong criticism from the Left, in large part due to the Lieberman Plan's proposed land and population transfers along ethnic lines. This focus on ethnicity and religion has drawn comparisons with the now defunct Kach party.[82][83]

The Lieberman Plan caused a stir among Arab citizens of Israel, which explicitly treats them as a 'fifth column' and as an enemy within. With few exceptions, Arabs in Israel argue that they have lived in the region for centuries, and should not have to renounce the villages and cities in which they, their parents, and their grandparents were born (although the plan calls for a transfer of sovereignty, rather than population). Others insist that as Israeli citizens, they deserve equal rights within the State, and should not be singled out according to their ethnic or religious background. Various polls show that Arabs in Israel in general do not wish to move to the West Bank or Gaza if a Palestinian state were created there[84] although at the same time refusing to identify as Israeli and referring themselves as Palestinians.

Allegations of anti-Arabism

Two Israeli Arab journalists were excluded from a campaign gathering held by Yisrael Beiteinu in Haifa. Haifa Deputy Mayor Yulia Shtraim, a member of the party's municipal faction, said she would not allow the journalists to enter the hall "because of the Arabs' demonstration and what [the demonstrators] say about [Avigdor] Lieberman". The Israeli Arab journalists were denied access, despite possessing press cards, being told that they were uninvited. However uninvited Jewish and foreign media were allowed in.[85]

Young fans waiting outside a Yisrael Beiteinu conference shouted the slogans "No loyalty, no citizenship" and "Death to Arabs" at passersby. One of the youths explained that they meant death to those who support terror.[86]

Knesset members

YB party ballot 2009

The party currently has 6 Knesset members, since 2015.

  1. Orly Levy
  2. Sofa Landver
  3. Hamad Amar
  4. Robert Ilatov
  5. Oded Forer
  6. Yulia Malinovsky

References

  1. 1 2 "Bringing the Zionist Dream to Life". yisraelbeytenu.com. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  2. ↑ "Guide to Israel's political parties". BBC News. 21 January 2013. Retrieved 28 June 2015.
  3. ↑ Ishaan Tharoor (14 March 2015). "A guide to the political parties battling for Israel’s future". The Washington Post. Retrieved 28 June 2015.
  4. ↑ "Yisrael Beiteinu supports the advancement of free-market economic policies". Jewish Virtual Library. Retrieved 25 April 2010.
  5. 1 2 Khanin, Vladimir (Ze'ev) (2008). "Israel's "Russian" Parties". In Robert O. Freedman. Contemporary Israel: Domestic Politics, Foreign Policy and Security Challenges. Westview Press. p. 165. ISBN 978-0813343853.
  6. ↑ Jim Zanotti (1 June 2015). "Israel: Background and U.S. Relations" (PDF). Congressional Research Service. p. 58. Retrieved 25 April 2010.
  7. ↑ "Right-wing Populism Wins in Britain and Israel". Haaretz. 3 July 2016.
  8. ↑ Arieff, Irwin (2011). "Middle East Peace Prospects: Is There Any Hope for Long-Term Peace". Issues in Peace and Conflict Studies: Selections From CQ Researcher. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage Publications. p. 217. ISBN 9781412992916. doi:10.4135/9781483349244.n8.
  9. ↑ Ulutaş, Ufuk (February 2009). "The 2009 Israeli Elections and Turkish-Israeli Relations" (PDF). SETA Policy Brief. SETA — Foundation for Political Economic and Social Research (31): 5. Retrieved 26 January 2013.
  10. ↑ Aikman, David (2009). The Mirage of Peace: Understanding the Never-Ending Conflict in the Middle East. Regal. p. 30. ISBN 978-0830746057.
  11. ↑ Malcolm B. Russell (2012). The Middle East and South Asia 2012. Stryker-Post Publications. p. 104. ISBN 978-1610488891.
  12. ↑ Carol Migdalovitz (April 2, 2009). "Israel: Background and Relations with the United States" (PDF). Congressional Research Service.
  13. ↑ Yuval Karni (5 October 2008). "Singer Arik Sinai joins Yisrael Beiteinu". Ynetnews. Retrieved 25 April 2010. Lieberman has been trying to turn Yisrael Beiteinu into a party appealing to a more veteran Israeli public, rather than just new immigrants.
  14. ↑ As'ad Ghanem. Ethnic Politics in Israel: The Margins and the Ashkenazi Centre. Routledge. ISBN 978-0415847483. Most votes in the 2006 elections came from the Russian voters. Although Lieberman did his best to downplay the image of the party as a 'Russian' one (including having non-Russian candidates on the Yisrael Beitenu list), he was unsuccessful. Even in the 2009 elections, survey results indicate that most Yisrael Beitenu votes came from the Russians.
  15. ↑ Lily Galili (9 February 2009). "Lieberman now throwing his 'no loyalty, no citizenship' motto at Shas". Haaretz. Retrieved 25 April 2010.
  16. ↑ Haviv Rettig Gur (10 February 2009). "Background: Beyond Israel Beiteinu's campaign slogans". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  17. ↑ Shahar Ilan (12 February 2009). "Final election results: Kadima 28 seats, Likud 27, Yisrael Beiteinu 15". Haaretz. Retrieved 25 April 2010.
  18. 1 2 "Mergers and Splits Among Parliamentary Groups". Knesset. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  19. ↑ "Sixteenth Knesset: Government 30". Knesset. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  20. 1 2 Gideon Alon; Mazal Mualem; Yoav Stern (11 January 2007). "Lieberman calls on Peretz to quit over appointment of first Arab minister". Haaretz. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  21. ↑ Gil Hoffman (15 January 2007). "Peretz: Israel Beiteinu 'racist party'". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  22. ↑ "Israel names first Arab minister". BBC News. 12 January 2007. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  23. 1 2 Mazal Mualem (16 January 2008). "Lieberman blasts Arab MKs, pulls party out of government". Haaretz. Archived from the original on 19 January 2008. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  24. ↑ Ezra HaLevi (24 January 2008). "Exposé Links Olmert, Lieberman and Sharon to Jericho Casino". Arutz Sheva. Retrieved 5 July 2015. The investigation against Lieberman and his daughter have been ongoing for years, but suddenly became active again once he left the government last week.
  25. ↑ Branovsky, Yael (22 December 2008). "Lieberman to approve Yisrael Beiteinu roster". Ynetnews. Retrieved 23 December 2008.
  26. ↑ "Eighteenth Knesset: Government 32". Knesset. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  27. ↑ Leshem, Elie (25 October 2012). "Netanyahu, Liberman announce they'll run joint list for Knesset". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 27 October 2012.
  28. 1 2 Liberman, Avigdor (23 June 2010). "My blueprint for a resolution". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 14 May 2012.
  29. ↑ Hagai Einav (12 February 2009). "Druze in Golan vote Lieberman out of 'protest'". Ynet. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  30. ↑ "Meet Hamad Amar, Yisrael Beiteinu's Druze candidate". Haaretz. 9 February 2009. Archived from the original on 12 February 2009.
  31. ↑ "I support creation of viable Palestinian state". Haaretz. 27 February 2009. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  32. ↑ "Israel mulls internment for Arab hate crimes". Al Jazeera. AFP. 7 May 2014. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  33. ↑ "Lieberman's party proposes ban on Arab Nakba". Haaretz. Reuters. 14 May 2009.
  34. ↑ Bronner, Ethan; Khaled Abu Aker; Taghreed El-Khodary (1 June 2009). "6 Die as Palestinian Authority Forces Clash With Hamas". The New York Times. p. A4.
  35. ↑ "Lieberman: Iran trying to deceive West". Ynetnews. 20 May 2012. Retrieved 6 June 2012.
  36. ↑ Ayalon, Danny (26 February 2012). "Preventing the political system's stagnation, collapse". Retrieved 6 June 2012.
  37. ↑ Ayalon, Danny (12 February 2011). "Desperately Seeking Political Courage". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 6 June 2012.
  38. 1 2 "Our Policies in Brief". Yisrael Beiteinu. Archived from the original on 15 April 2012. Retrieved 6 June 2012.
  39. ↑ Hoffman, Gil (24 June 2009). "Norwegian law passage may cause ministerial war". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 6 June 2012.
  40. ↑ "Bill to Universally Recognize Army Conversions Approved". Yisrael Beiteinu. Retrieved 20 May 2012.
  41. ↑ Yanover, Yori (29 May 2012). "New Knesset 'Tzohar Law' to Curtail Chief Rabbinate's Control on Weddings Passes First Reading". The Jewish Press. Retrieved 23 May 2012.
  42. ↑ Ettinger, Yair (7 March 2010). "New bill would make conversion insufficient for Israeli citizenship". Haaretz. Retrieved 17 December 2012.
  43. ↑ Kate Bigam (30 April 2010). "New Bill Would be 'Disastrous to the Unity of the Jewish People'". Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism. Retrieved 17 December 2012.
  44. ↑ "Party platform". Yisrael Beiteinu. Archived from the original on 17 April 2009.
  45. ↑ Yair Ettinger (8 February 2009). "Shas' Rabbi Yosef: Voting for Lieberman gives strength to Satan". Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  46. ↑ http://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.722738
  47. ↑ "Israel apologizes for lawmaker's Mubarak comments". Fox News. 29 October 2008. Archived from the original on 1 December 2008.
  48. ↑ "Israeli ultranationalist poised for election gains". Fox News. 4 February 2009. Archived from the original on 15 February 2009.
  49. ↑ "Far-right joins Israel coalition". BBC News. 30 October 2006. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  50. ↑ David Blair (5 February 2009). "Far-Right Israeli party enjoys surge in polls to become election kingmaker". The Telegraph. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  51. ↑ Vinny Casey (15 October 2003). "Who's who: Israeli groups". The Telegraph.
  52. ↑ Chris McGreal (30 March 2006). "Olmert seeks partners after indecisive victory". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 July 2015. Avigdor Lieberman, the outspoken far-right Israeli politician ... an unashamed hardliner
  53. ↑ Rory McCarthy (16 March 2009). "Hardliner Avigdor Lieberman set to become Israel's foreign minister". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  54. ↑ Toni O'Loughlin (27 December 2008). "Israeli far right gains ground as Gaza rockets fuel tension". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  55. ↑ "How did Kadima lost four seats in one week?". Haaretz. 22 January 2009. Archived from the original on 11 February 2009. Retrieved 5 July 2015. Avigdor Lieberman's far-right party Yisrael Beiteinu
  56. ↑ "Yisrael Beitenu list: Two famous models, one disappointed ambassador". The Jerusalem Post. 23 December 2008. Archived from the original on 14 August 2012.
  57. ↑ Greg Myre; Taghreed El-Khodary (23 October 2006). "Israeli Adds Far-Right Party to Coalition". The New York Times. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  58. ↑ "Israel: Hardline nationalists savour pre-election boost in polls". The Times. 2 February 2009.(subscription required)
  59. ↑ "Ultra-nationalist party quits Israeli coalition govt". France 24. 16 January 2008. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  60. 1 2 Kevin Peraino (7 February 2009). "Orly Levy, Israel's Rising Right-Wing Candidate". Newsweek. Retrieved 5 July 2015. hard-right Israel Beitenu party ... ultranationalist party ... Lieberman probably won't get enough votes to be prime minister. Yet the populist may well be a kingmaker ... For dovish Israelis, Levy's résumé isn't really the problem—it's the hard-line views of her party.
  61. ↑ Eric Westervelt (9 February 2009). "Israeli Ultranationalist Expected To Gain In Election". All Things Considered. NPR. Retrieved 5 July 2015. Avigdor Lieberman, an ultranationalist right-wing candidate ... To many Israeli Arab citizens, Lieberman's message is simply xenophobic.
  62. ↑ "Abbas, Haneya slam Israel's new round of Gaza offensive". Xinhua News Agency. 1 November 2006. Retrieved 5 July 2015. ... Avigdor Lieberman, chairman of the extreme-right party Yisrael Beiteinu.... Islamic Jihad's leader in Gaza, Khaled al-Batsh ... said the operations 'are a gift to the ultra-nationalist bigot Avigdor Lieberman who joined the government to expand aggression and terrorism.'
  63. ↑ NEWS: Livni demands rotating prime ministerial post; Lieberman wants defense or foreign United for Peace
  64. ↑ Harry de Quetteville (5 November 2006). "Jews and Arabs can never live together, says Israel's vice PM". The Sunday Telegraph. Retrieved 5 July 2015. Avigdor Lieberman, a populist Israeli politician
  65. ↑ Rory McCarthy (5 February 2009). "Hardline populist Lieberman could be surprise kingmaker in Israeli election". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 July 2015. From here, Lieberman, 50, has engineered an extraordinary rise in Israeli politics, his hardline, populist rhetoric catching the public mood and elevating his party, Yisrael Beitenu (Israel Our Home), to third position in opinion polls ahead of next Tuesday's election.
  66. ↑ Douglas Hamilton (8 February 2009). "Israeli populist's hardline message draws voters". Reuters. Retrieved 5 July 2015. Avigdor Lieberman does not appeal to the finer instincts of Israeli voters. The right-wing party leader seems to be gaining support for Tuesday's election by campaigning on populist anxieties, such as the enemy within and how to expose him by challenging his loyalty.
  67. ↑ Phil Zabriskie (24 October 2006). "Olmert's New Coalition Partner: A Step Forward or Back?". Time. Retrieved 5 July 2015. Nor is Lieberman easily placated. He is one of the most controversial players on the Israeli political scene, a self-styled populist who, after breaking with Netanyahu in the late 1990s, delighted in blasting the Israeli political establishment.
  68. ↑ Gil Hoffman; Sheera Claire Frenkel (22 October 2006). "Olmert, Lieberman sign coalition deal". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 5 July 2015. United Arab List-Ta'al MK Ahmed Tibi said the addition of a 'fascist and racist party' showed Olmert's true colors.
  69. ↑ "A Jewish Hitler?". Antiwar. 27 October 2006.
  70. ↑ "Arab MK calls Lieberman a 'fascist'". The Jerusalem Post. 22 March 2006. Retrieved 5 July 2015. MK Issam Mahoul charged Tuesday that Israeli democracy is in danger and called MK Avigdor Lieberman of Israel Beiteinu a 'fascist.' 'Lieberman wants to transfer Um al-Fahm citizens of the State of Israel outside of the country. My question is: How does Israeli democracy have a place for such a racist program?'
  71. ↑ Nathan Jeffay (11 February 2009). "Beiteinu Now Big Player". The Jewish Daily Forward. Retrieved 5 July 2015. On the Palestinian side, Ramallah-based analyst Sam Bahour told the Forward that he deems Beiteinu 'racist and fascist'.
  72. ↑ "Arabs Pessimistic About Israeli Elections". VOA News. 2 November 2009. Retrieved 5 July 2015. A newspaper in Cairo, Egypt's Al-Ahram weekly, likened Israel's ultra-nationalist Yisrael Beiteinu party leader, Avigdor Lieberman, to a fascist.
  73. ↑ Haviv Rettig Gur; Abe Selig (10 February 2009). "'Lieberman isn't racist, Hamas is'". The Jerusalem Post. Speaking to one television camera, 16-year-old Veronica, sporting a Lieberman election T-shirt, insisted that 'Lieberman isn't racist, Hamas is racist.'
  74. ↑ Gideon Alon (26 February 2007). "Not racist, stigmatized". Haaretz. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  75. ↑ Abe Selig (14 February 2009). "Is Avigdor Lieberman a racist? No, but...". The Jerusalem Post. Retrieved 5 July 2015. Is Lieberman is a racist? 'Is he a racist? No, I don't think so,' said Efraim Zuroff, famed Nazi hunter and head of the Simon Wiesenthal Center in Jerusalem.... Dr. Alex Yakobson, a lecturer in history at the Hebrew University, said that Lieberman's proposed policies were offensive, not racist, although the atmosphere of Lieberman's campaign may have brought the racist beliefs of others to the surface.
  76. ↑ "Olmert may include ultra-nationalist party in coalition". Gulf News. 5 April 2006. Archived from the original on 4 July 2008. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  77. ↑ Jennie Rothenberg Gritz (May 2007). "'Israel Our Home'". The Atlantic. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  78. ↑ Avigdor Lieberman (5 March 2009). "The case for 'responsible citizenship' in Israel". New Jersey Jewish News. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  79. ↑ Benhorin, Yitzhak (26 February 2009). "Lieberman: I Back the Creation of Palestinian State". Ynetnews. Retrieved 27 February 2009.
  80. ↑ Yehuda Ben-Meir (26 April 2009). "Lieberman is no racist". Haaretz. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  81. ↑ Jaron Gilinsky reporting (27 May 2009). Israel's Kingmaker (video). Time. Retrieved 25 April 2010.
  82. ↑ Gideon Levy (2 August 2009). "Kahane Won". Haaretz. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  83. ↑ "Israel's 'Mr. TV' likens Lieberman to slain anti-Arab extremist Kahane". Haaretz. 1 January 2009. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  84. ↑ Uri Dromi (24 March 2006). "Israeli Arabs and the Vote". International Herald Tribune. Archived from the original on 27 November 2006. Retrieved 5 July 2015. Lieberman never bothered to ask the Israeli Arabs if they were willing to give up their Israeli citizenship and become citizens of a Palestinian state. Sammy Smooha of Haifa University, who published the Index of Arab-Jewish Relations in Israel in 2004, did ask them, and they answered with a resounding No. Despite all the rhetoric about being Palestinians first, hardly a single Israeli Arab would trade Israeli citizenship for a Palestinian one.
  85. ↑ Lily Galili; Fadi Eyadat (10 February 2009). "Arab reporters banned from campaign meet of Lieberman's far-right party". Haaretz. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  86. ↑ Feldman, Yotam (5 February 2009). "Lieberman's anti-Arab ideology wins over Israel's teens". Haaretz. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
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