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Thursday, September 20, 2007
Olmert moves to keep Kadima united

Olmert moves to keep Kadima united
Gil Hoffman , THE JERUSALEM POST Sep. 20, 2007
www.jpost.com
/servlet/Satellite?cid=1189411442925&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert will deliver a major policy address on diplomatic
issues for the first time in several months at Thursday's Kadima council
meeting at the party's Petah Tikva headquarters.

The meeting comes amid a conflict in Kadima over Vice Premier Haim Ramon's
recent statements about dividing Jerusalem. Ramon's words angered officials
in the Prime Minister's Office and the Foreign Ministry, as well as Kadima
ministers, who will use their speeches at the event to call upon Olmert to
rule out dividing Jerusalem.

"Olmert will attempt to ease the tension in the party," a source close to
the prime minister said. "He will deliver a broad diplomatic address that
will explain exactly what he intends to do with the Palestinians."

The ideological battle over Jerusalem in Kadima is symbolic for a party led
by Olmert, who, as Jerusalem mayor, often declared that the capital would
never be divided, but spoke about giving up the city's Arab neighborhoods in
his first interviews as prime minister.

Kadima's new Jerusalem branch was inaugurated Wednesday by Olmert's ally, MK
Menahem Ben-Sasson, who spoke about the importance of maintaining a Jewish
majority in the city. The council meeting, which will focus on diplomatic
issues for the first time, will allow all of Kadima's leaders to outline
their diplomatic plans.

Party officials said that by the end of the night it would be clear who
represented the right, center and left flanks inside Kadima. Until now,
Ramon has been seen as the leader of the left in the party, Transportation
Minister Shaul Mofaz the right and Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni the center.

The controversy started when Jerusalem City Council opposition leader Nir
Barkat of Kadima asked Ramon to clarify his position on the capital. Ramon
responded in a letter to Barkat that the capital's Jewish neighborhoods
would remain under Israeli sovereignty, and the Arab neighborhoods would be
Palestinian. Ramon said there would be "special sovereignty" over the city's
holy sites, and that the Western Wall, the Jewish Quarter and other holy
sites in the Jerusalem vicinity would remain under Israeli sovereignty
"forever."

Ramon's associates said he merely stated his own positions that he has
favored for many years, since long before he joined Kadima. They said his
views had become mainstream and were even adopted by Israel Beiteinu.

"What I say about Jerusalem is in line with Kadima's platform and
principles," Ramon told the party activist Web site, Yalla Kadima. "We want
Israel to be a democratic Jewish state. There will be territorial exchanges.
In Jerusalem, what is Arab will be Palestinian and what is Jewish will be
Israeli in order to ensure that Jerusalem will maintain a decisive Jewish
majority. That fits with what we had in mind when we formed Kadima."

Asked about reports that he backed Israel already withdrawing from Arab
neighborhoods in Jerusalem in upcoming months, Ramon said: "I don't think
any steps should be taken until the Palestinians fulfill their security
commitments in the road map. It's not right to deal with issues of
disagreement now, and that's true with Jerusalem and the refugees."

Kadima politicians lashed out at Ramon, accusing him of trying to instill
views that are "left of Meretz" over the centrist party.

"Ramon spoke for himself only," Public Security Minister Avi Dichter said.
"His views are not those of Kadima. Most of the party opposes them. Kadima's
views are its platform, which calls for an undivided Jerusalem and not
skipping the Palestinian commitments in the road map. No one has a mandate
to change that unilaterally."

Barkat, who wants to run for Jerusalem mayor under Kadima's banner, wrote
Olmert a letter Wednesday demanding that he distance himself from Ramon's
statements. He said he could not remain in a party that would divide
Jerusalem.

Opposition MKs said they were sure Ramon's statements were a "trial balloon"
floated by Olmert to test the waters of public opinion ahead of the November
summit in Washington with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.

"Haim Ramon is the face of this government," National Union MK Zvi Hendel
said. "There is no greater embarrassment than the fact that a convicted sex
offender with no morals is now making crazy moves to divide Jerusalem under
Olmert's auspices. He should have left politics in shame forever."

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