With support among Israelis in the low single digits, political observers said Friday that it was not surprising that Prime Minister Ehud Olmert would begin pursuing a so-far unmined group of potential supporters – the Israeli far left. In a speech before a retired kibbutz farmers' forum in the Jezreel Valley, Friday, Olmert said that Israelis who believe they could hold onto Judea and Samaria forever “were dreaming. Everyone understands that the state of Israel can't exist without a guarantee of a Jewish majority," Olmert told the group, and in order to maintain that majority, Olmert claimed, Israel has no choice but to jettison the lands liberated during the Six Day War.
In a separate speech on Saturday to a group at Kibbutz Yifat, Olmert said that he intended to run for Prime Minister again as the Kadima candidate. He also discussed a number of security issues, and said that Israel should not launch an extended assault against Hamas in Gaza, as an IDF official said, on Thursday, might be necessary.
In a separate speech on Saturday to a group at Kibbutz Yifat, Olmert said that he intended to run for Prime Minister again as the Kadima candidate. He also discussed a number of security issues, and said that Israel should not launch an extended assault against Hamas in Gaza, as an IDF official said, on Thursday, might be necessary.