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| Son of Israeli Ex-President Takes Helm of Labor Party, Urging Peace | Son of Israeli Ex-President Takes Helm of Labor Party, Urging Peace |
| (about 11 hours later) | |
| JERUSALEM — Isaac Herzog, the son of a former president, took the helm of Israel’s Labor Party and thus Parliament’s opposition on Friday, vowing to restore the party’s historic focus on promoting peace with the Palestinians and to mount a vigorous challenge to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-leaning government. | JERUSALEM — Isaac Herzog, the son of a former president, took the helm of Israel’s Labor Party and thus Parliament’s opposition on Friday, vowing to restore the party’s historic focus on promoting peace with the Palestinians and to mount a vigorous challenge to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s right-leaning government. |
| “Only bold steps toward peace with the Palestinians will enable us to break through on all fronts,” Mr. Herzog said at a news conference in Tel Aviv. “I am not sure — I have grave doubts — whether Prime Minister Netanyahu understands this and if he’s working toward it.” | “Only bold steps toward peace with the Palestinians will enable us to break through on all fronts,” Mr. Herzog said at a news conference in Tel Aviv. “I am not sure — I have grave doubts — whether Prime Minister Netanyahu understands this and if he’s working toward it.” |
| Promising to “restore the political banner to center stage” for “the sake of a just state,” he said he would “outflank those in power until we return to lead the country.” | Promising to “restore the political banner to center stage” for “the sake of a just state,” he said he would “outflank those in power until we return to lead the country.” |
| A lawyer universally known as Buji and a father of three, Mr. Herzog, 53, hails from a beloved Israeli dynasty: His father, Chaim Herzog, a military man and diplomat, served as Israel’s sixth president, from 1983 to 1993, and his grandfather Yitzhak HaLevi Herzog was the first Ashkenazi chief rabbi of the modern state. | A lawyer universally known as Buji and a father of three, Mr. Herzog, 53, hails from a beloved Israeli dynasty: His father, Chaim Herzog, a military man and diplomat, served as Israel’s sixth president, from 1983 to 1993, and his grandfather Yitzhak HaLevi Herzog was the first Ashkenazi chief rabbi of the modern state. |
| Mr. Herzog, who has served in Parliament since 2003 and held several ministerial posts, replaced Shelly Yacimovich, a former journalist who emphasized domestic socioeconomic concerns during her two years leading Labor, and was virtually invisible on the international stage. | Mr. Herzog, who has served in Parliament since 2003 and held several ministerial posts, replaced Shelly Yacimovich, a former journalist who emphasized domestic socioeconomic concerns during her two years leading Labor, and was virtually invisible on the international stage. |
| He takes over after a decade of decline for Labor and the broader Israeli left, as the psychological scars of the violent second intifada, or Palestinian uprising, have made a majority of the public deeply skeptical about settling the long-running conflict. He won with a decisive 58 percent over Ms. Yacimovich’s 41 percent in primary elections on Thursday that drew a low turnout among party members, with only 52 percent voting. | He takes over after a decade of decline for Labor and the broader Israeli left, as the psychological scars of the violent second intifada, or Palestinian uprising, have made a majority of the public deeply skeptical about settling the long-running conflict. He won with a decisive 58 percent over Ms. Yacimovich’s 41 percent in primary elections on Thursday that drew a low turnout among party members, with only 52 percent voting. |
| Labor — Avodah in Hebrew — and its precursors were the dominant force in Israel from its founding until 1977. It was the political home of Israel’s first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion, and of Yitzhak Rabin, the prime minister assassinated in 1995 after signing the Oslo peace accords. The party currently holds 15 of Parliament’s 120 seats, up from its nadir of 13 in Mr. Netanyahu’s last term, and has been suffering from internal turmoil since Israel’s elections in January. | Labor — Avodah in Hebrew — and its precursors were the dominant force in Israel from its founding until 1977. It was the political home of Israel’s first prime minister, David Ben-Gurion, and of Yitzhak Rabin, the prime minister assassinated in 1995 after signing the Oslo peace accords. The party currently holds 15 of Parliament’s 120 seats, up from its nadir of 13 in Mr. Netanyahu’s last term, and has been suffering from internal turmoil since Israel’s elections in January. |
| At once self-deprecating and self-promoting, Mr. Herzog speaks perfect English and travels widely. He was a top aide to Ehud Barak during his tenure as prime minister, the minister of housing under Ariel Sharon, and then minister of tourism and then of welfare in Ehud Olmert’s government. | At once self-deprecating and self-promoting, Mr. Herzog speaks perfect English and travels widely. He was a top aide to Ehud Barak during his tenure as prime minister, the minister of housing under Ariel Sharon, and then minister of tourism and then of welfare in Ehud Olmert’s government. |
| Ms. Yacimovich had promised Mr. Netanyahu that Labor would serve as a “safety net” and join the government if the American-brokered peace talks that started this summer yielded a breakthrough that crumbled his conservative coalition. | Ms. Yacimovich had promised Mr. Netanyahu that Labor would serve as a “safety net” and join the government if the American-brokered peace talks that started this summer yielded a breakthrough that crumbled his conservative coalition. |
| Some Israeli political analysts think that Mr. Herzog — who was also a minister from 2009 to 2011 under Mr. Netanyahu and his Likud Party — may try to bring Labor into the coalition earlier, but on Friday he described that theory as “fundamentally wrong.” | Some Israeli political analysts think that Mr. Herzog — who was also a minister from 2009 to 2011 under Mr. Netanyahu and his Likud Party — may try to bring Labor into the coalition earlier, but on Friday he described that theory as “fundamentally wrong.” |
| “I have always said that if Netanyahu were to undertake a historic and courageous act for the sake of peace, I would be there to help him,” Mr. Herzog said, echoing his predecessor. “I believe that the Israeli right has reached a dead end. It does not provide an answer to the social problems, and it is locked into a political position that creates unceasing friction with the rest of the world.” | “I have always said that if Netanyahu were to undertake a historic and courageous act for the sake of peace, I would be there to help him,” Mr. Herzog said, echoing his predecessor. “I believe that the Israeli right has reached a dead end. It does not provide an answer to the social problems, and it is locked into a political position that creates unceasing friction with the rest of the world.” |
| Marcus Sheff, a longtime Labor hand who now runs the Jerusalem office of the Israel Project, an advocacy group, said Mr. Herzog’s election “has the potential to shake up Israeli politics.” | Marcus Sheff, a longtime Labor hand who now runs the Jerusalem office of the Israel Project, an advocacy group, said Mr. Herzog’s election “has the potential to shake up Israeli politics.” |
| “While Labor would surely support the peace process from outside the government, supporting it from within gives it an added boost, and for Netanyahu, he will be less reliant on those to his right,” Mr. Sheff said in a statement. “Herzog will need to weigh carefully whether staying in opposition will give him more options and allow him to build a real governing alternative to Likud come election time, or to be tempted by the cabinet table.” | “While Labor would surely support the peace process from outside the government, supporting it from within gives it an added boost, and for Netanyahu, he will be less reliant on those to his right,” Mr. Sheff said in a statement. “Herzog will need to weigh carefully whether staying in opposition will give him more options and allow him to build a real governing alternative to Likud come election time, or to be tempted by the cabinet table.” |
This article has been revised to reflect the following correction: | This article has been revised to reflect the following correction: |
| Correction: November 23, 2013 | Correction: November 23, 2013 |
Due | Because of a translation error, an earlier version of this article rendered imprecisely a comment from Isaac Herzog. He said he wanted to restore the “political banner” — a reference to the peace process — to center stage, not the “national flag.” (The phrase he used can also be translated as “national flag,” but he was not advocating a nationalist agenda.) |