The Israeli parliament has approved a new coalition led by Ehud Olmert, who is determined to separate from the Palestinians and annex the largest settlements on the West Bank. The vote of confidence on Thursday in Olmert's four-party coalition and 25-member cabinet followed four weeks of intense coalition talks. Olmert's centre-right Kadima party won a March 28 election and now dominates the government. The cabinet line-up was approved by 65 votes to 49 of those deputies present following a keynote address by Olmert, a speech by the leader of the right-wing opposition Benjamin Netanyahu and a fiery debate from lawmakers.The coalition includes:
Kadima: led by Olmert, the new prime minister. The centre-right party has 29 seats. It was founded in November by Ariel Sharon, the former prime minister who suffered a massive strike in January and has been in a coma since. The party is dominated by breakaways from Sharon's former right-wing, nationalist Likud party, along with some from the moderate Labour and academics.
Labour: a centre-left party led by Amir Peretz who is now the new defence minister. Labour, with 19 seats, favours compromise with the Palestinians to reach peace and promotes a quasi-socialist domestic agenda.
Shas: led by the new industry and trade minister, Eli Yishai, with 12 seats. The ultra-Orthodox Jewish party represents Jews of Middle Eastern and North African origin and is hawkish towards the Palestinians.
Pensioners: led Rafi Eitan, the new pensioners minister. The party was the surprise of the March election. It won seven seats. It wants to gain rights for Israel's elderly.