Saturday, December 10, 2016

Netanyahu to Remain in Office Despite Obama-Linked Efforts

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party won a surprising victory in yesterday’s elections over the Zionist Union headed by Isaac Herzog, despite the efforts of an anti-Netanyahu campaign linked to President Obama. Likud won 30 seats compared to 24 for the center-left Zionist Union, all but guaranteeing Netanyahu being given the first opportunity to form a ruling coalition.
It is no secret that the U.S.-Israel relationship has suffered recently and that Netanyahu and Obama disagree on many policy issues, including the Iranian nuclear program and the peace process of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The disagreement over Iran came to a head as Netanyahu spoke before Congress asserting that the Obama Administration’s negotiations with Tehran enhance the Mullahs’ path to nuclear weapons.
For his part in the peace process, Obama has repeatedly issued strong statements condemning Israeli settlements and calling for a return to 1967 borders. Netanyahu views at least some of the settlement areas as legitimate and considers the 1967 borders indefensible.
These highly visible policy clashes have led to the perception that the leaders have an acrimonious relationship, which has overshadowed the traditional American-Israel alliance.

http://www.centerforsecuritypolicy.org/2015/03/18/netanyahu-to-remain-in-office-despite-obama-linked-efforts/ 

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