Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni said today she had told Prime Minister Ehud Olmert he should resign and that she wanted to take over as leader of his centrist Kadima party.
Ms Livni's announcement may be a fatal blow to Mr Olmert as he scrambles to contain the political fallout from a report by a government-appointed commission that blamed him for serious failures in the handling of last year's Lebanon war.
"I told the prime minister that I thought to resign was the right thing to do," Ms Livni said after meeting Mr Olmert privately.
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Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni has told Ehud Olmert to resign. Image: Reuters. |
"Now is the time to restore the public's trust in the government." Mr Olmert has so far resisted calls to step down.
Earlier today Avigdor Yitzhaki, one of parliament's most influential lawmakers, said Mr Olmert had lost the confidence of his centrist Kadima party and of the nation.
Mr Olmert's faction was expected to hold a meeting later today to decide how to proceed. The political crisis spread further when aides to Defence Minister Amir Peretz told Israel Radio and Army Radio he was considering stepping down.
At his first cabinet meeting since the report was released on Monday, Mr Olmert acknowledged personal failings. "It is primarily incumbent on this government, which is responsible for the failings, to also be responsible for fixing them," he said, adding: "I suggest that all those who are in a hurry to take advantage of this report and make political gain -- slow down."
Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said he hoped political developments in Israel would not set back efforts to restart peace talks.
"I hope we will not find ourselves in a vacuum," he said.
Polls published today in three major Israeli newspapers showed that 65 to 73 per cent of the public wanted Mr Olmert to quit.