Deputy Leader of Israel
Olmert was elected as a member of the sixteenth Knesset in January 2003. He served as the head of the election campaign for Likud in the elections, and subsequently was the chief negotiator of the coalition agreement. Following the elections he was appointed as Designated Acting Prime Minister and Minister of Industry, Trade and Labor. From 2003 to 2004, he also served as Minister of Communications.
On 7 August 2005, Olmert was appointed acting finance minister, replacing Benjamin Netanyahu, who had resigned in protest against the planned Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip.
Olmert, who had originally opposed withdrawing from land captured in the Six-Day War, and who had voted against the Camp David Peace Accords in 1978, was a vocal supporter of the Gaza pullout. After his appointment, Olmert said:
I voted against Menachem Begin, I told him it was a historic mistake, how dangerous it would be, and so on and so on. Now I am sorry he is not alive for me to be able to publicly recognize his wisdom and my mistake. He was right and I was wrong. Thank God we pulled out of the Sinai.
When Sharon announced he was leaving Likud to form a new party, Kadima, Olmert was one of the first to join him.
Read more about this topic: Ehud Olmert
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