PERETZ, AMIR

Peretz, Amir: translation

(1952- )

Born in Boujad, Morocco, on 9 March 1952 as Armand Peretz, Peretz immigrated (seeALIYA) with his family to Israel in 1956. Like many others fromAraband African countries arriving in Israel in the 1950s, his family was settled in a frontierdevelopment town,Sderotin theNegevDesert close to the border with theGaza Strip.

Peretz was elected mayor of Sderot in 1983 at the age of 31.He was first elected to theKnessetin 1988 on theIsrael Labor Partylist. He became chairman of theHistadrutin December 1995. Peretz formed the breakaway Am Echad (One People) Worker's Party in 1999; it won two Knesset seats in 1999 and three seats in 2003. In May 2004, Peretz and Am Ehad agreed to be reintegrated with the Israel Labor Party. Surprising most pundits and pollsters, he won the 9 November 2005 Labor leadership primary, taking 42 percent of the votes as against 40 percent forShimon Peresand 17 percent forBinyamin Ben-Eliezer. He became the first Moroccan-born politician to lead a major Israelipolitical party. After winning this election, Peretz resigned his post at the Histadrut. He subsequently withdrew Labor from theAriel Sharon-led government.

The results of the 26 March 2006Knesset electionof the 17th Knesset were mixed for Peretz. Although the number of Knesset seats won by the Israel Labor Party actually dropped by 2 from the previous Knesset election in 2003 (19, down from 21), the party's success in making inroads in the traditionallyLikud-dominated development towns of the Negev Desert was in large measure viewed as an affirmation of Peretz's leadership.

At the same time, many pundits suggested that Peretz was outma-neuvered in the coalition-building process byPrime MinisterElectEhud Olmertinto accepting the defense portfolio in May 2006 rather than finance or a social affairs ministry, which had been Peretz's declared preferences. There were widespread public calls for Peretz to resign as defense minister over his handling of theSecond Lebanon War(2006) as well as growing discontent within the Labor Party about his leadership.

Peretz was defeated in the first round of voting in the Israel Labor Party leadership primary that was ultimately won by former party leader and prime ministerEhud Barakin June 2007. Peretz subsequently relinquished to Barak his position as defense minister in theKadima-led coalition government headed by Prime Minister Olmert.