cheesemonster2005 Posted January 4, 2006 Share Posted January 4, 2006 After the stroke he suffered only weeks ago and an operation, Ariel Sharon has been admitted to hospital and is said to be "fighting for his life". Power has been passed to the Deputy Primeminister and it's said that Sharon won't be able to continue the job even if he survives. Sharon has been the Prime Minister of Israel since 2001. He was a member of the ruling Likud party before leaving to form Kadima in 2005. His past included various ministerial positions within the Israeli government. He's famed for bringing relative peace to Israel and the occupied territories and for the handover of Gaza in 2005. On the other side of the scale he's widely believed to be a war criminal. He led many Israeli military operations including one where 69 residents were killed after the army blew up 50 houses. He was also found indirectly responsible, by the Israeli courts, for killings which followed the 1982 Lebanon invasion. BBC News: Sharon rushed to hospital BBC News: Profile of Sharon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amadeus Posted January 5, 2006 Share Posted January 5, 2006 I thought you would start a thread about this..waiting for Rog to arrive now... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrsTrellisfromNorthWales Posted January 5, 2006 Share Posted January 5, 2006 Of course, my first thought when I saw the headlines was: Poor Mrs Osbourne. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
x-in-man Posted January 5, 2006 Share Posted January 5, 2006 Doesn't he live in the desert in the East somewhere? - If Im right - thats the price of petrol going up then. It only takes a bulb to blow in a cleaners cupboard any where in the East and the resulting panic puts 10 Dollars on the price of the black stuff. At least he is unlikely to appear on - 'celeb. come dancing', for some time to come. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lonan3 Posted January 5, 2006 Share Posted January 5, 2006 After the stroke he suffered only weeks ago and an operation, Ariel Sharon has been admitted to hospital BBC News: Profile of Sharon Perhaps more interesting at the moment would be a profile on Ehud Elmert, the deputy Prime Minister: Born in Israel, Ehud Olmert is a graduate of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem with degrees in Psychology, Philosophy and Law. He has had his own successful law practice in Israel. Olmert was first elected to the Knesset in 1973 at the age of twenty-eight and was re-elected seven consecutive times. He served as Minister of Minorities (1988-1990) and as Minister of Health (1990-1992). Between the years 1981-1988, he was a member of the Foreign Affairs and Security Committee and has also served on the Finance, Education and Defense Budget Committees. From 1993 to 2003, Ehud Olmert served for two terms of office as Mayor of Jerusalem, during which time he devoted himself to the initiation and advancement of major projects in the city, the development and improvement of the education system and the development of road infrastructure. He also spearheaded the development of the light rail system in Jerusalem and the investment of millions of shekels in the development of mass transportation options for the City. On August 7, 2005, Olmert was appointed as acting Finance Minister of Israel, replacing Benjamin Netanyahu, who had resigned in protest against the planned Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip. [2], [3] Olmert, who had originally opposed withdrawing from land captured in the Middle East War of 1967, and who had voted against the Camp David Peace Accords in 1978, is a vocal supporter of the Gaza Pullout. "I voted against Menachem Begin," Olmert said in after his appointment. "I told him it was a historic mistake, how dangerous it would be, and so on and so on. Now I am sorry he is not alive for me to be able to publicly recognize his wisdom and my mistake. He was right and I was wrong. Thank God we pulled out of the Sinai." [4] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Speckled Frost Posted January 5, 2006 Share Posted January 5, 2006 I also heard on the radio today that Kadima was going to walk the next elections but, as Sharon is Kadima, they will instantly lose a third of their votes if he dies. Now, I'm not sure what the alternatives are, but any de-stabilisation in such a volatile country can only be a bad thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tugger Posted January 5, 2006 Share Posted January 5, 2006 As someone whose sentiments are vaguely pro-Palestinian, I think this is bad news. Sharon is not a man know for doing them favours, but I suspect that they are less likely to have their prospects of statehood advanced by anyone else. Sharon can get away with things like the unilateral Gaza withdrawal because from an Israeli perspective his "security" credentials carry so much weight. A more dovish character wouldn't be able to persuade centrist Israelis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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