Shaul Mofaz Is Iranian

[Rasputin]

Shaul Mofaz (born 1948 in Tehran, Iran) is the current Israeli Minister of Transportation and a Deputy Prime Minister, and a former Minister of Defense. Previously he was the 16th Chief of the General Staff of the Israeli Defence Forces, and was the second Israeli of a Mizrahi background to achieve that post.

Mofaz has had the unique distinction of serving under four different Israeli Prime Ministers, having been appointed as Chief of Staff by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (1996-1999) in 1998, then served under Prime Minister Ehud Barak (1999-2001), and was then appointed as Minister of Defense in 2002 by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon (2001-2006), and presently serves under Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.

Born in Tehran (although his parents came from Isfahan), Mofaz immigrated to Israel with his parents in 1957. Upon graduating from high school he joined the Israel Defense Forces in 1966 and served in the Paratroop Brigade. He participated in the Six-Day War, Yom Kippur War, 1982 Lebanon War, and Operation Entebbe with the paratroopers and Sayeret Matkal, an elite special forces unit.

Mofaz was then appointed an infantry brigade commander for the 1982 Lebanon War. Afterwards he attended the US Marine Corps Command and Staff College in Quantico, Virginia. On his return he was briefly appointed commander of the Officers School, before returning to active service as commander of the Paratroop Brigade in 1986.

Shaul Mofaz served in a series of senior military posts, having been promoted to the rank of Brigadier General (1988 ). In 1993 he was made commander of the IDF forces in the West Bank. In 1994, he was promoted to Major General, commanding the Southern Corps. His rapid rise continued, in 1997 Mofaz was appointed Deputy Chief of the General Staff and in 1998 he was appointed Chief of the General Staff.

His term of Chief of Staff was noted for financial and structural reforms of the Israeli Army. But the most significant event in his tenure was the eruption of the Second Intifada. The tough tactics undertaken by Mofaz drew widespread concern from the international community but were broadly supported by the Israeli public. Controversy erupted over the offensive in Jenin, intermittent raids in the Gaza Strip, and the continued isolation of Yasser Arafat.

Mofaz foresaw the wave of violence coming early as 1999 and prepared the IDF for intense guerrilla warfare in the territories. He fortified posts at the Gaza Strip and due to advance MOUT tactics and intelligent use of bulldozers he managed to keep Israel Defense Forces casualties low. However, he drew criticism from leftist groups because of the methods he had undertaken (such as house demolitions). According to a book by two Israeli journalists, Mofaz gave orders to kill 70 Palestinian militants per day when he was head of the military during the second intifada.

Following a government crisis in 2002, Shaul Mofaz was controversially appointed Defense Minister by Ariel Sharon. Although he supported an agreement with the Palestinians, he was determined to "liquidate" Arafat and was willing to make no compromise in the war against militant groups such as Hamas, Islamic Jihad and Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades.

The fact that he had only recently left his position as IDF Chief of Staff prevented him participating in the 2003 election (by which time Mofaz had joined Sharon's Likud). Nevertheless, Sharon reappointed him as Defense Minister in the new government.

On 21 November 2005, Mofaz rejected Sharon's invitation to join his new party, Kadima, and instead announced his candidacy for the leadership of Likud. But, on 11 December 2005 he withdrew from both the leadership race and the Likud to join Kadima.

Following the elections in late March 2006, Mofaz was moved from the position of Defense Minister and received the Transport ministry in the new Cabinet installed on May 4, 2006.

With Israel's current prime minister, Ehud Olmert, being pressured to resign due to corruption charges, Mofaz has announced that he will run for prime minister in the next election.

On 5 August 2008, Mofaz officially entered the race to be leader of the Kadima party. That same day he received a blessing by Shas spiritual leader Rabbi Ovadia Yosef.

[Rasputin]

Israeli ruling party choosing new leader

Israel's ruling Kadima Party voted for a new leader Wednesday, choosing between Tzipi Livni, a popular foreign minister who would be the nation's first female prime minister in more than 30 years, and Shaul Mofaz, a gruff ex-general who favors a tough line against Iran, Syria and the Palestinians.

The winner will likely be Israel's next prime minister, replacing Ehud Olmert, who is stepping down over corruption charges.

The biggest issue at stake was the future of Israel's peace talks with the Palestinians, with Livni seen as far more amenable to a final deal than Mofaz. Livni, 50, is Israel's lead negotiator in those talks.

Either candidate would make history by becoming prime minister. Livni would be the first female premier since Golda Meir. Mofaz, who was born in Iran, would be the first Israeli of Middle Eastern, or Sephardic, descent to lead the Jewish state.

Mofaz is seen as having a better chance at cobbling together a ruling coalition if he wins. But polls show Livni to be a far stronger candidate in a general election against Israel's other political star, Benjamin Netanyahu of the hard-line Likud Party.

Kadima extended voting hours by half an hour, apparently to give voters returning from work more time to cast ballots at crowded polling stations. Analysts predicted a high turnout would favor Livni, who has a wide advantage in opinion polls but who is seen not to have rallied party activists as efficiently as Mofaz.

The fact that only 74,000 party members, in a country of 7 million people, were eligible to vote added to the uncertainty of the outcome. Israeli media reported that two hours before the new closing time of 10:30 p.m. (3:30 p.m. EDT), some 40 percent of the eligible Kadima voters had cast ballots. However, voting often picks up in the evening after working hours in Israel.

Mofaz, a former chief of staff and defense minister, insisted that opinion polls that showed him trailing Livni were inaccurate.

It remained unclear if either would be able to break the 40 percent threshold needed to avoid a runoff, which, if required, would be held next week. Two other candidates, Cabinet minister Meir Sheetrit and former Shin Bet security service director Avi Dichter, lagged far behind in the polls.

The winner of the primary will have 42 days to put together a ruling coalition. Failure to do so would mean a new general election in early 2009, a year and a half ahead of schedule. Olmert will remain as a caretaker leader until a new coalition is approved by parliament.

Foreign minister since 2006, Livni is a rare female power figure in a nation dominated by macho military men and a religious establishment with strict views on the role of women. A former lawyer and one-time agent in the Mossad spy agency, Livni favors diplomacy over confrontation, even though she said last week that she has "no problem pulling the trigger when necessary."

Joyce Amiel, a Kadima supporter in Tel Aviv, said she was voting for Livni "mainly because she is a woman, even though her positions are not clear. We think she would do the best job. We want her to win."

Casting her vote in Tel Aviv, the usually reserved Livni bubbled with uncharacteristic enthusiasm. She said she was pleased with the turnout at her polling station and urged people to vote.

"You can determine today what the character of Kadima will be," Livni said. "You can determine today if you really have had enough of old-time politics. Come and vote, bring your children, and show them how you are changing the country."

Mofaz takes a tougher line, demanding the Palestinians fulfill a series of conditions before a final deal can be reached. He also is more willing to order military action in times of crisis. He spooked global oil markets in June when he said Israel would have "no choice" but to attack Iran if sanctions fail to curb its nuclear program. He has since backed away from those comments.

"The state of Israel stands before major challenges in the coming years and needs a strong leader who has the courage to decide and the ability to act," he told Army Radio.

The primary is Kadima's first since it was founded by then-Prime Minister Ariel Sharon in 2005. Sharon suffered a debilitating stroke in early 2006, and Olmert subsequently led the party to victory in elections.

Olmert, who is under police investigation over his finances, has said he will resign as soon as Kadima has a new leader. He has been carrying out intensive peace talks with the moderate Palestinian leadership in charge of the West Bank, although both he and his Palestinian counterparts say they are unlikely to reach the U.S.-set target date of year's end for a final peace deal.

Israeli political science professor Gadi Wolfsfeld predicted Livni could use such a deal to win a national election.

"If she comes to a tentative agreement with the Palestinians, why not run on that platform, which would be very good for her," he said.