SHOTLIST:

1. Shimon Peres and Russian Foreign minister Igor Ivanov enter the hall

2. Media

3. Pull out from talks around table

4. Peres

5. Pan of the talks

6. Russian Foreign ministry emblem

7. Peres and Ivanov come out for press conference

8. Media

9. SOUNDBITE: (English) Shimon Peres, Israeli Foreign Minister (with Russian translation): "The Mitchell document creates an opportunity for peace negotiations. The document proposes the sequence of actions which is accepted by us. And with crystallisation of the world public opinion and others concerned we could back to peace negotiations"

10. Media

11. SOUNDBITE (Russian) Igor Ivanov, Russian Foreign Minister: "Russia is ready to support any initiative accepted by the Israeli and Palestinian sides that would lead to cessation of violence and restarting the peace process"

12. Pan press conference

13. SOUNDBITE (English) Shimon Peres, Israeli Foreign Minister: "We asked the Palestinian authorities, first of all, to discipline their forces because some of the Palestinian forces participate in the shooting and the killing."

14. Kremlin exteriors

15. Russian President Vladimir Putin greets Peres

16. Media cutaway

17. Wide shot talks at table

18. SOUNDBITE: (Russian) Vladimir Putin, Russian President: "We are especially happy to see you here, the man who is known in our country and in the whole world as a man who wants to bring peace to the Middle East and has done a lot personally to bring it about."

19. Wide shot talks

20. Peres

21. Wide shot talks

22. Media

23. Kremlin exteriors

STORYLINE:

Israeli Foreign Minister Shimon Peres, who is visiting Moscow, has defended the latest Israeli raids against Palestinian targets, saying they were aimed against a mortar factory in particular and terrorism in general.

In a bid to lobby Russian officials for support, Peres met with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Foreign Minister Igor Ivanov and the patriarch of Russia's Orthodox Church, Alexy II.

At the start of Peres' talks with the Russian president in the Kremlin, Putin expressed concern about Russian visitors to Israel caught in violence, and urged peace negotiations.

Speaking at the press conference after a meeting with his Russian counterpart Igor Ivanov, Peres praised the proposals put forward by an international commission headed by former U-S Senator George Mitchell to end almost eight months of violence.

Peres urged Russia and the United States to join their efforts as co-sponsors of the Mideast peace process to encourage face-to-face talks between the Israelis and Palestinians.

In turn, Ivanov said that Russia is ready to support any political initiative helping to establish peace in the Middle East.

Russia has played a small role in the Mideast peace process, compared with the United States.

Moscow has developed friendly relations with Israel after decades of animosity, but has largely lost its former clout with the Palestinians and other Soviet-era allies in the Arab world.

English/Nat

After two days of mourning, foreign minister Shimon Peres has taken up his duties as acting prime minister of Israel.

Peres left for work this morning at the prime minister's office in Jerusalem surrounded by bodyguards.

It was Shimon Peres' first day at work as Acting Prime Minister Tuesday.

Security has been stepped up around the former Foreign Minister after a number of death threats.

Such threats are being taken extremely seriously by a twitchy Security Service after a 25-year-old law student, Yigal Amir, broke through security ranks to shoot Yitzhak Rabin.

Rabin was the first head of state to be assassinated in Israel and to many his killing has marked the beginning of a new era.

Throughout the morning, Peres was visited by international heads-of-state who not only offered their condolences but messages of hope and support for the future.

Fear is mounting over the effect the recent assassination will have over the already shaky peace process.

Britain's Prime Minister John Major spent some time with Peres.

Afterwards, Peres told the press his top concern remained the peace process -- and elections came second.

SOUNDBITE: (English)

"For us the main consideration is the peace process and not the term of the government. I said yesterday and I will repeat it again - for us to win peace is more important even than to win the elections."

QUESTION : "So you won't go to elections now?"

ANSWER: "I shall continue with the process of peace as we have started and we shall go on."

SUPERCAPTION: Shimon Peres acting prime minister.

Australia's President Paul Keating spent several minutes with Peres.

And Crown Prince Hassan of Jordan met the Israeli President.

The presence of so many Arab leaders has given rise to hopes that the peace Rabin was so instrumental in negotiating may have changed politics in the region for good.

But although Peres went back to work, mourning is far from over for the rest of the nation.

At the site of the assassination - Tel Aviv's Kikar Malkei square- thousands of mourning candles burnt brightly in the early morning sun.

Scores of Israeli's continue to stop and pay their respects to their fallen leader.

Some write notes - others leave flowers and wreaths. Some simply cry.

VOXPOP: (English)

"I still can't believe what has happened and that we can get back to the same everyday life. Rabin is dead and I still can't believe what is going on here and what is going to happen afterwards"

SUPERCAPTION : Naomi, student from Jerusalem

Israel had closed the Gaza strip and West Bank after the assassination fearing attacks by Islamic militants.

But some people Tuesday were being allowed through the strict security controls. Men over 35 had to show passes.

In a country which has lived with violence since its birth, Rabin's killing has merely added to the sense of insecurity.

Jerusalem, Israel. 7 November 1995

1. Bodyguard

2. Various of Peres getting in car and leaving for work

3. Exterior of prime minister's office

4. Cutaway of cameraman

5. Peres and Major exiting

6. SOUNDBITE: Peres

7. Peres with Australian Prime Minister Paul Keating

8. Peres on sofa with Keating

9. Peres talking on phone to Irish Prime Minister John Bruton

11. Jordan's Crown Prince Hassan arrives at President's building

12. Hassan on chair

Tel Aviv 7 November 1995

7. Various of mourners

8. Various of Kikar Malkei square and flowers and wreaths

Jerusalem 7 November 1995

10. VOXPOP: (English)

Erez junction, Gaza strip 7 November 1995

12. Trucks lined up at the junction

13. Palestinians waiting

14. Soldier on guard

15. Israeli soldiers checking I-D documents

16. Cars driving through check point

17. Soldiers with guns

English/Nat

Shimon Peres was officially confirmed and sworn in as Prime Minister of Israel in Jerusalem on Wednesday along with the rest of his cabinet.

The former Foreign Minister, who will also take on the post of Defence Minister, had been appointed acting Prime Minister just hours after the assassination of Yitzhak Rabin.

On Wednesday, he said he would seek a broader dialogue with Israelis opposed to his government's policies -- and crack down on Jewish militants.

Few doubted that Peres would not be confirmed after he won unanimous endorsement from the Labor Party central committee on Tuesday night.

In addition to the portfolio of Prime Minister, Shimon Peres will also be defence minister in the new government that gained an easy approval from the 120-member Knesset.

His most significant appointment was former army general Ehud Barak as Foreign Minister - a move which may counter those who see Peres as too liberal.

SOUNDBITE:

"In a way it is a learning experience, because in the past 15 years I had quite few opportunities to be very close in contact with intimate diplomatic contacts."

SUPER CAPTION: Ehud Barak, Israeli Foreign Minister.

Peres vowed to continue the course he has already set of aggressively pursuing the peace process.

SOUNDBITE:

"We shall continue our policy of peace, continue our economy policy and try to bring an end of violence to a united nation."

SUPERCAPTION: Shimon Peres, Israeli Prime Minister.

In a show of unity following Rabin's assassination, Peres' new government was approved by a wide margin of 62 to eight with 38 abstentions.

Peres's new coalition consists of 44 seats for his Labor party, 12 seats for the dovish Meretz bloc and two members of a breakaway right-wing faction. He also has support from Arab members, giving him a majority in the Knesset.

The opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu sharply attacked Peres in the Knesset, but his Palestinian partners were quick to offer support.

SOUNDBITE:

"We see a lot of continuity in this cabinet, we feel it will become the partner with the Palestinian authority."

SUPERCAPTION: Nabil Shaath, Palestinian Minister of Planning and Cooperation.

Peres said he would seek a broader dialogue with Israelis opposed to the government's policies, but would crack down on Jewish militants.

He also urged Syria to speed up negotiations.

Peres has hinted in the past that he was ready to accept Syrian demands for a complete Israeli withdrawal from the Golan Heights.

(Tel Aviv, 22 November 1995)

1. Exterior of Knesset.

2. Interior of parliament rooms.

3. Cabinet seated with Peres.

4. Ehud Barak, new Foreign Minister, walking in corridor.

5. SOUNDBITE: Barak.

6. Various of ministers in corridors.

7. SOUNDBITE: Peres.

8. Various Voting.

9. Peres being sworn in.

10. SOUNDBITE: Nabil Shaath, Palestinian Minister of Planning and Cooperation

11. Various group cabinet picture with President.

English/Nat

Former Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres says his successor prematurely touched off the battle for Jerusalem and stretched the truth about Yasser Arafat giving a green light to terrorism.

He said Arab-Israeli relations were in a "deep crisis" that was much the fault of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's "zig-zag policy".

Peres is calling for a national unity government that would bring his Labor Party into the Likud-led government to solve the current impasse in the Mideast.

Netanyahu's Likud party currently hangs on to power by a fragile majority, although if the two main parties could reach an agreement, it would nullify the power of the right wing extremists.

Familiar scenes from the days of the Palestinian uprising (the Intifada) have returned to dominate the news from Israel and the West Bank.

The violence comes at a time of deep crisis in the relations between Israel and the Palestinians.

Both sides are refusing to return to the negotiating table unless the other meets an exhaustive list of conditions.

For Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, however, meeting the Palestinian demands could upset the delicate political balance which holds him in office.

His narrow coalition of 63 of 120 legislators often survives only with the support of the right-wing extreme and religious parties.

The possibility of establishing a national unity government was discussed from the first day Netanyahu took over the prime minister's office.

However, the idea has been greeted mostly with a frosty reaction from the members of the opposition Labor party.

For Shimon Peres, former Prime Minister and Labor leader, the notion of a unity government is a question of when rather than if.

SOUNDBITE: (English)

Q: What circumstances would have to be created in order

for this to take place?

A: A very strong support by public opinion and the capacity

to have the sort of guiding lines that will make the government

proceed on the way to peace.

SUPER CAPTION: Shimon Peres, Labor party leader

Commentators have speculated that current political developments may present Peres with his last taste of power.

SOUNDBITE: (English)

"It's his last chance to step and lead, to be a leader in the Israeli political field because otherwise, in a few months he'll be gone, he'll be out of business formally."

SUPER CAPTION: Gadi Sukenik, Political analyst

Former chief of staff, Ehud Barak, is the man that will take over the Labor party, on June 3.

If Labor joins the government now, Shimon Peres will get the highest Labor cabinet position.

So Barak is doing all he can to resist a unity move this side of the June handover.

SOUNDBITE: (English)

"In a democracy there should be a government and an opposition. We are not in the government so we should an opposition to fight to topple down the government."

SUPER CAPTION: Ehud Barak, Labor party

Barak, who intends to run for premiership, is trying to establish his public image as an alternative to Netanyahu.

SOUNDBITE: (English)

"He (Barak) is afraid that if he's going in, or if the Labor party with him goes in, he will be seen as the twin brother of Binyamin Netanyahu. Many people see him like this, and this is one of the things that he wants to get rid of."

SUPER CAPTION: Gadi Sukenik, Political analyst

Netanyahu struggled to convince his own cabinet to approve the Hebron agreement - and he is likely to face even tougher battles if he proceeds within the Oslo framework.

Forming a coalition government may be the only way to neutralize extreme right wing influence.

SOUNDBITE: (English)

"The peace process is in a dead lock. I think that the only way to get it out of there is to establish a national unity government on a different platform, which will support the peace process and the idea of a constant agreement with the Palestinians."

SUPER CAPTION: Meir Shitrit, Likud party member

However, even within Likud, members fail to agree the terms on which they would share power with Labor.

SOUNDBITE: (English)

"If the Labor party would like to join a unity government upon the guidelines that we have now, in this government, of course they are welcome."

SUPER CAPTION: Silvan Shalom, Likud party member

Israeli media have reported lately that secret negotiations are already underway to establish the unity government.

If a coalition can be built, it may represent Netanyahu's best chance yet of saving the peace process.

Jerusalem, Israel 1 April 1997 and file from Jerusalem and Hebron, West Bank

Hebron, West Bank (recent file):

1. Palestinians throwing stones viewed through barbed wire

2. Palestinian youth throwing stones

3. Israeli soldier shooting towards Palestinians

4. Crowd throwing stones

5. Man throwing a fire bomb

Jerusalem, Israel:

6. File (June 1996) Benjamin Netanyahu waving to supporters at Likud victory rally

7. Netanyahu and former PM Peres shaking hands as Netanyahu enters his new office

8. SOUNDBITE: (English) Shimon Peres, Labor party leader

9. Set Up Gadi Sukenik, political analyst, Channel 2

10. SOUNDBITE: (English) Gadi Sukenik

11. Ehud Barak, Labor party's number two

12. Cutaway cameramen

13. SOUNDBITE: (English) Ehud Barak

14. Barak leaving the microphones stand

15. SOUNDBITE: (English) Gadi Sukenik

16. (Recent file) Israeli cabinet meeting (recent file)

17. PM Netanyahu with FM David Levi

18. SOUNDBITE:(English) Meir Shitrit, Likud party member

19. legislators meeting

20. legislators

21. SOUNDBITE: Silvan Shalom, Likud party member

22. Hall of the Knesset, Israeli parliament

23. Netanyahu speaking in a Likud faction meeting

24. Likud members at meeting

25. Close-up Netanyahu - serious and then smiling

Natural Sound

After two days of mourning for Israel's fallen leader, foreign minister Shimon Peres has taken up his duties as acting prime minister.

Peres left his home for work this morning at the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem to take over the levers of power.

The crowds have gone, but a few stalwart supporters braved the chill night at Rabin's graveside in the Mount Herzl military cemetery.

The fallen Israeli leader's tomb is obscured under the weight of wreaths and messages left by his supporters.

Rabin's death has unleashed a tide of national grief that far exceeded his political support and revealed the degree to which the warrior-turned-peacemaker grew to symbolise the country.

After two days of national mourning, Israelis must now turn their faces to the future.

Security has been stepped up around the caretaker prime minister Shimon Peres who, like Yitzhak Rabin, was the subject of death threats from Israeli right-wingers.

Today his driver took him not to the Foreign Ministry but to the Prime Minister's Office in Jerusalem where he assumes the mantle of power.

Israel's security services have been on a state of alert since Rabin was murdered at a peace rally in Tel Aviv last Saturday.

The almost knee-jerk reaction of military chiefs was to seal off the West Bank and Gaza Strip following the killing.

But perhaps in recognition that Israel has as much to fear from its own extremists as from Islamic radicals, the closure has now been partially lifted.

Jerusalem, November 7, 1995

1. Various of wreaths and candles and mourners at Rabin's grave

2. Man crying

3. Shimon Peres' house

4. Bodyguards

5. Peres gets in car and is driven off

6. Peres' car arriving at the Prime Minister's Office buildings

7. Gates opening and car driving through

9. Various of army checkpoint outside Jerusalem

SHOTLIST

1. Exterior of Hotel

2. Israeli vice premier Shimon Peres walks towards cameras, shakes hands with hosts

3. Cutaway

4. SOUNDBITE: (English) Shimon Peres, Israeli vice premier:

"I think the Government has a chance to overcome the present crisis because the coalition remains a very wide one and I don't believe there is anybody who has interest in new elections."

Q: Should Olmert step down, who do you see taking his place, are you ready (to take his place)

"It is up to the people, they will decide."

5. Peres walking away.

STORYLINE:

The Israeli Vice Premier said his government "had a chance" to overcome Israel's political crisis that has seen repeated demands for the resignation of Ehud Olmert, the Prime Minister.

"I think the Government has a chance to overcome the present crisis because the coalition remains a very wide one," said Peres, who was in Germany as part of a think tank on the Middle East.

Olmert is under fire for his handling of last summer's war against Lebanese guerrillas, has faced public protest and rebellions within his Kadima party.

Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, a party heavyweight, recently called on him to quit, and another top party figure, parliamentary coalition chief Avigdor Yitzhaki, resigned to protest Olmert's refusal to step down.

But other Kadima officials rallied around their beleaguered chief, no doubt mindful that a widespread mutiny could lead to early elections that could land the party on the skids.

Polls indicate hawkish former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, leader of the opposition Likud Party, would win if new elections were held.

Olmert said he intended to stay on to remedy the severe flaws in decision-making and crisis management that a government war probe identified in a scathing report released last Monday.

Olmert was singled out in the report for "hasty" decisions and bad judgment.

When asked on Saturday if Olmert should step down, Peres said: "It is up to the people, they will decide."

The hostilities between Israel and Lebanon erupted on 12 July 2006 when members of the guerrilla group crossed into Israel, killed three soldiers and captured two others.

In 34 days of fighting, nearly 160 Israelis died and nearly 4,000 Hezbollah rockets came crashing into northern Israel.

More than 1,000 Lebanese civilians and combatants also died.

For many Israelis, the war was a failure because it didn't achieve the two main goals Olmert set - returning the soldiers and crushing Hezbollah.

And while the guerrilla group was pushed away from Israel's northern border, Israeli intelligence officials have warned that Hezbollah has replenished its depleted store of missiles with help from its Syrian and Iranian backers.

SHOTLIST:

1. Pan round table with various heads of state and dignitaries seated

2. Shimon Peres followed by Prime Minister Ariel Sharon enter

3. Pan from Peres to Sharon sitting with guests

4. SOUNDBITE (English): Ariel Sharon, Israeli Prime Minister:

We accepted the 'road map'. We are ready to negotiate. With regard to the present time, there are two obstacles. One is Mr. Arafat who just a short while ago undermined the government of Abu Mazen (Former Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas), with who we started our talks. And the other thing is terror. And of course, as long as terror exists, and before having full cessation of terror, hostilities and incitement, I don't see any possibility - though we would like to start - any possibility to move forward with the peace process."

5. Pan round table

6. Exterior of Prime Minister's office

STORYLINE:

A parade of global figures, from Bill Clinton and Mikhail Gorbachev to US actress Kathleen Turner, were expected in Tel Aviv Sunday to help mark the 80th birthday of Shimon Peres - Nobel laureate, visionary of peace and often-failed candidate for Israeli prime minister.

The extraordinary guest list reflected global appreciation for Peres' efforts toward a "New Middle East" - the title of his 1995 book dismissed by many here as utopian - and a longing for the days before the Israeli-Palestinian peace process collapsed in violence that has killed thousands in the last three years.

Peres, whose birthday was actually last month, says he only went along with the party idea - organized by both supporters and the rightist Likud government whose policies he opposes - to bring some cheer to the region.

The tight schedule includes a reception at the "Peres Center for Peace" in Jaffa, a meeting with Prime Minister Ariel Sharon in Jerusalem and a gala at a Tel Aviv concert hall on Sunday - followed Monday by a "Vision and Reality" symposium on subjects from art and culture to geopolitics and the use of water resources.

Prime Minister Sharon took advantage of Sunday's meeting - and the presence of several dignitaries - to once again criticize Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat.

Sharon said that Israel has accepted the 'road map' but has two problems. One is Arafat, the other is terror and those factors stop them moving forward.

Israeli parliamentary opposition leader Shimon Peres interviewed on a number of issues including the economy, Israel's relationship with Jordan, and the possibilities of coalition government after the next general election.

+++SOUNDBITE+++

1. ms Peres

Question: On the issue of the economy, would you tighten up the foreign currency regulations which have been liberalised by the Likud government?

Peres: " yes, we feel it is the responsiblity of the government... imports have gone up and exports down... economy intervention because thousands of lives affected...

Question: what major changes has this party undergone since the early days of the state?

Peres: For the first 30 years the real job was to build a nation, now we have to maintain it... a very big change... Second change is you must learn from experience... in the arly days were were like in a dream, now we have to face hard dilemmas and deal with them according to our philosophy. Second generation have new problems, security, economic complications. 30 or 40 years ago media did not play a very big part in politics. Today you are permanently struggling to defend your position. I came into the party as a boy of 15. Activities writing an article or atttending a meeting. Today we live by television radio and press.

Question: are you happy with all the changes in the Labour party?

Peres: Can't say everything was rosy, we've made quite a lot of mistakes. In the summin gup of the first 30 years I think we have had a brilliant performance. Can't think of a government that has achieved more under Labouotr guidance.

Question: How did the death of Yigal Allon change the Labour Party climate?

Peres: a real loss in personal terms and party life... deep mutual respect between us...

What is the political scenario now in Labour and where is Yitzak Rabin in it?

Peres: jut had our electin sfor the person who should head the list... i was elected with 2 thrids majority...

Question: about contacts between Labour Party and religious party

Peres: we takl but we do not negotiate. More leaders reach the conclusion that the only way to deal with the demanding situation is an early election, a fair chance of that... decison should be taken in parliament. trying to advance this in parliament.... talks of balance... change of postions by minority. Religious party may take part in coaltion depending on results of elections. I wuold recommend inviting them in.

Question: what do you see as Jordan's position in the peace process?

Peres: I don't see any valid partner but Jordan. All other eligible partners are no existant in real terms. SIncerely hope the King of Jordan will join us in negotiations. Basic interest on part of Jordan to join in. to enable the creation of a Jordanian Palestinian framework for peace. (Jordan) cannot have had assurance before negotiations start... speaks of possibilities of deals with Jordan with regard to the West Bank... We are in a critical situation and we can overcome it... have the strength to deal with it.

No chance things can get better with the current government. DO not expect the governement ot win the election or rimprove the situation

2. vs reporter and Peres noddies, reactions, and cut aways

3. vs books and objects in Peres' study, cut aways

4. cu photograph of Peres with Golda Meir and Ben Gurion, pull back to Peres showing

5. ms leafing through album

6. cu Peres talks about Negev and its potential

7. mcu leafing through an album of 1970's photographs

8. cu pan over table with photographs scattered

9. various cu photographs held and showed by Peres

Film: Rev Sound: Mag SOF Colour NYFilm: No LN Number: LN19318 Available in HD

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened a special session of his cabinet to mark the death of former Israeli president Shimon Peres.

Netanyahu said that Peres "never stopped trying to reach peace and believing in peace".

Netanyahu, Peres' long time political rival, admitted that the two "had differences of opinion", but said their relations strengthened with time.

Peres served as president during Netanyahu's previous term as prime minister.

He died early on Wednesday at the age of 93.

In 1994, Peres was awarded the Nobel Prize after he secretly brokered the historic Oslo interim peace accords with the Palestinians a year earlier.

Jerusalem - 28 September 2016

1. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stands with cabinet ministers for a moment of silence

2. Close-up framed portrait of Shimon Peres with black ribbon

3. SOUNDBITE (Hebrew) Benjamin Netanyahu, Prime Minister of Israel:

"Shimon Peres never stopped trying to reach peace and believing in peace. His hand was always extended to a historic compromise with our neighbours, and even if this compromise tarried, he taught us never to give in to despair, but to cling to hope, and also to continue in our work."

4. Netanyahu and ministers at special cabinet session commemorating Peres

5. SOUNDBITE (Hebrew) Benjamin Netanyahu, Prime Minister of Israel:

"There were many things we agreed on. And the number of those matters grew over the years, but there were also differences of opinion between us which are a natural part of democratic life. And in these instances the respect I had for Shimon did not diminish. On the contrary, as time passed our relations grew closer. I appreciated him, I loved him."

6. Pan right of ministers meeting with Netanyahu

7. SOUNDBITE (Hebrew) Benjamin Netanyahu, Prime Minister of Israel:

"The prayer I made for his recovery did not come true. But our consolation is that so many things in Shimon's (Peres) life did come true. And in the seven years he served as president, he was rejuvenated. He had public admiration that crossed parties and crossed sectors. The people's love was his, and warmed his heart."

8. Mid of ministers at cabinet meeting.

9. SOUNDBITE (Hebrew) Benjamin Netanyahu, Prime Minister of Israel:

"Shimon (Peres) enjoyed international recognition that crossed the world. Heads of state asked for his friendship and gave him respect. With us, many of them will accompany him on his last journey to his final resting place in the earth of Jerusalem."

10. Israeli flag

11. Wide of Israeli Prime Minister's office

Hebrew/Eng/Nat

Out-going Israeli Prime Minister Shimon Peres bade farewell to high ranking members of the Israel Defence Forces (I-D-F) at the Chief of Staff's office on Thursday.

His good-byes come as the incoming Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, begins work on forming his new government.

The departing Prime Minister, Shimon Peres, sat next to the Chief of Staff, Amnon Lipkin Shahak and praised the work of the I-D-F.

Before Peres took the post of Prime Minister he was Foreign Minister under assassinated Premier Yitzhak Rabin.

SOUNDBITE: (Hebrew)

"I want to thank you all for your cooperation. First of all to the Chief of Staff, to his Deputy, I want to thank Ori, who shared the responsibility with me. We have made him a citizen and a soldier, it is not a simple job to do for both sides. I am sure that you will continue to serve your people and country, and this is not just a phase, with the best capability, with clean hands, while looking both towards the short term and the long term."

SUPERCAPTION: Out-going Prime Minister, Shimon Peres

At the end of the meeting Peres and the officers raised their glasses, marking the end of their partnership.

In Jerusalem Prime Minister-elect, Benjamin Netanyahu continued his efforts to form a government.

Netanyahu met with the Russian-born leader of the Israeli immigrants party, Nathan Sharansky, and with Avigdor Kahalani, head of the Third Way party.

Most prospective coalition members are tight-lipped about the talks, but Avigdor Kahalani spoke outside the meeting without giving anything away.

SOUNDBITE: (English)

"We would like to see, even at peace time we should stay at the Golan Heights. This is what we are going to ask Bibi Netanyahu"

SUPER-CAPTION: Avigdor Kahalani, Third Way Party leader

No decisions have been announced yet, but Netanyahu is hoping to present his government to the nation next week.

Tel Aviv, Jerusalem, Israel (13 June 1996)

Tel Aviv

1. Peres arriving at meeting

2. Close-up Chief of Staff, Amnon Shahak and Hertzel Bodinger, Airforce

commander.

3. SOUNDBITE: (Hebrew) Shimon Peres

4. IDF officers raising glasses

Jerusalem

5. Nathan Sharansky arriving to Netanyahu's office

6. Cut away cameramen

7. Avigdor Kahalani arriving to Netanyahu's office

8. Kahalani talking to media

9. SOUNDBITE: (English) Kahalani

10. People in Knesset.

SHOTLIST:

1. Guard standing by guard post

2. Car with Shimon Peres, leader of the opposition, approaching security

3. Car being checked

4. Car entering Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's residence

5. Photographers

STORYLINE:

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon on Monday invited the opposition Labor Party to open negotiations on joining his government, and officials said

they expected the two sides to reach a deal relatively quickly.

A broad-based coalition government with Labor would give Sharon much-needed support as he pushes forward with his contentious plan to withdraw from the Gaza Strip.

But Sharon also risks alienating hard-liners within his Likud Party who oppose a union with the opposition.

Sharon met opposition leader Shimon Peres privately for one hour ON Monday morning. Both sides said the talks had gone well.

"The prime minister turned to Shimon Peres and asked him to open negotiations on Labor joining the government. He asked that they begin as soon as possible," said Yoram Dori, a spokesman for Peres.

Dori said Peres would meet with Labor lawmakers later on Monday to discuss the invitation. The party is scheduled a meeting Tuesday, when it is expected to accept the offer.

Officials close to both men said they expected a deal to be reached soon.

Sharon has turned to Labor after facing increasing opposition to his Gaza plan from far-right coalition partners and hard-liners in his own party. Defections from the government have left him as leader of a fragile minority coalition.

By September 2005, Sharon plans to withdraw from all of the Gaza Strip, where 7,500 Jewish settlers live amid 1.3 million Palestinians, and uproot four isolated settlements in the West Bank.

The withdrawals are part of his "unilateral disengagement" plan, which he says will reduce friction with the Palestinians and boost Israel's security. Sharon refuses to negotiate directly with the Palestinians.

In a recent interview, Peres said he would not join the government unless Sharon agrees to resume talks with the Palestinians and to commit to a much larger withdrawal from the West Bank.

But the two men are likely to resolve their difference.

Peres, a Nobel peace laureate and a former prime minister now in his 80s, is widely believed to want to return to a position of power.

Sharon, meanwhile, has few options as he tries to carry out his plan. Without Labor, his fragile coalition faces a strong risk of collapse.

But Sharon also faces opposition to the move from within his Likud Party. Finance Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has expressed concern that Labor would hamper his economic reforms, and Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom could lose his post to Peres.

SHOTLIST:

Tel Aviv

1. Wide shot of Labor leader Shimon Peres at event

2. Peres walking to camera

3. SOUNDBITE (English) Shimon Peres, Leader of Labor Party:

"Well, I'm very glad about the decision of the Likud Party, where a majority supported Prime Minister Sharon to move ahead with the plan of disengagement and create a national union government with the participation of the Labor Party. I think it's a good day, I believe it's a good start. I hope we shall be able and ready to move ahead in the direction of peace. It's not simple, it's not easy, but it is promising and the right step. I got, this morning, a call from the prime minister inviting me, my party, to join in the government. The bureau of the party will meet tomorrow night and I shall ask the permission to start the negotiations and I hopefully shall be able to start the negotiations, that also."

4. Wide shot of Peres talking to media

Ramallah

5. Set up shot of Palestinian Minister for Labour, Ghassan Khatib

6. SOUNDBITE (English) Ghassan Khatib, Palestinian Labour Minister:

"The evaluation of the possible effect of the last vote in the Likud on the peace process will be judged by its practical consequences on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. If this will lead to a change in the composition of the government, of the kind that will bring the Israeli government back to the negotiating table and put an end to the approach of using force to achieve objectives, than this might be a positive development - because we judge things by their affect on the practical behaviour of the Israeli government."

7. Cutaway shot of Khatib

8. SOUNDBITE (English) Ghassan Khatib, Palestinian Labour Minister:

"I think Israel has to take successive steps of the kind that will lead to the complete end of the occupation if we are to reach a complete peace. In the meanwhile any Israeli arrangements have to be upon negotiations and arrangements with the Palestinian side and it has to show the Palestinian people that these are steps towards ending the occupation. But removing certain Israeli positions at certain points in the territories in Gaza, for example, and in return consolidating the occupation and intensifying the Israeli attacks on Palestinians and other parts of the Palestinian territories - that is an approach that is only going to lead to a continuity of the unfortunate viscous circle of violence."

9. Khatib being interviewed

STORYLINE:

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon invited the Labor Party into his governing coalition on Friday, a day after winning approval from the ruling Likud Party to bring its traditional rival back into the government.

Hard-line opposition has left Sharon with a minority coalition of just 40 seats in the 120-member parliament.

Sharon called Labor leader Shimon Peres early on Friday to invite him to open negotiations about forming a new coalition, Peres told APTN.

Peres welcomed the move, saying: "I think it's a good day, I believe it's a good start."

He said he would seek permission from his party's bureau on Saturday night to start negotiations to join the coalition.

Israel Radio said Sharon also planned to invite the religious parties United Torah Judaism and Shas into the coalition.

Sharon needs Labor's support to shore up his coalition government and push forward with his plan to to pull out of the entire Gaza Strip and four small West Bank settlements by July 2005.

In a new sign of progress on Friday, Israeli security officials said the army was prepared to turn over security responsibilities in northern Gaza to the

Palestinians well ahead of the withdrawal.

Palestinian Labour Minister Ghassan Khatib cautiously welcomed Sharon's invitation to the opposition Labor Party to join the government.

But he added that Palestinians officials will reserve judgement until they see "the affect on the practical behaviour of the Israeli government."

Khatib also cautiously welcomed the new Israeli proposal for northern Gaza, but said further withdrawals from Palestinian areas would be needed to reach a permanent peace deal.

SHOTLIST:

Tel Aviv, Israel

1. Mid of demonstrators walking down the streets with Israeli flags and banners calling on Israeli government to continue building settlements

2. Zoom out of demonstrators holding up banners as vehicles drive past

3. Close of demonstrators chanting and dancing

4. SOUNDBITE (English) Ayaelet Shaked, Organiser of demonstration:

"The demonstration is about supporting the settlers, we want to show that Israel is one people and we call on the PLO (Palestine Liberation Organisation) to stop the incitement about Jewish people, about Israelis where ever they are living."

5. Various of demonstrators trying to block road

Jerusalem

6. Exterior of Israeli supreme court

7. Wide of swearing in ceremony for judges that Israeli president, Shimon Peres, was attending

8. Mid of Peres (middle) and other officials

9. SOUNDBITE (Hebrew) Shimon Peres, Israeli president: (condemning an attack that killed five Israelis in a West Bank settlement)

"Words fail in front of the horror, the loss of humanity. Our hearts are with the orphans, the bereaved families, the entire settlement during these awful moments. I am certain that the security forces will turn every stone and catch the perpetrators of the horrors and bring them to justice. The terror will be defeated and will not win."

10. Cutaway of people listening

11. Peres walking away from podium as audience applauds

STORYLINE:

Dozens of settlers and Israeli right wing activists demonstrated in Tel Aviv on Sunday and called on the government to continue with the construction of settlements in the West Bank after five members of an Israeli family - including three children - were knifed to death as they slept in a West Bank settlement over the weekend.

The protesters blocked off some of the streets in the city with their organiser demanding that PLO (Palestine Liberation Organisation) stop the incitement against the Jewish people.

Even in a country long accustomed to deadly violence, the stabbings in the settlement of Itamar stunned the nation.

Pictures of the victims, including a 4-year-old boy and his infant sister, were splashed across the front pages of major newspapers.

At a swearing in ceremony for supreme court judges in Jerusalem, the Israeli president Shimon Peres condemned the attacks.

"Our hearts are with the orphans, the bereaved families, the entire settlement during these awful moments. I am certain that the security forces will turn every stone and catch the perpetrators of the horrors and bring them to justice. The terror will be defeated and will not win," added Peres

The Israeli government responded defiantly to the bloody assault by approving construction of new settlement housing.

The bloodshed, which shattered a lengthy lull in the West Bank, threatened to drive Israeli-Palestinian peacemaking even further out of reach.

Earlier in the day as Israel's military searched for the Palestinian suspects in a broad sweep in the West Bank, thousands of mourners thronged a Jerusalem cemetery for the funeral.

Peace talks have been stalled since September, and the combination of deadly violence against Israelis and new settlement construction was likely to deepen the distrust between the Israelis and Palestinians.

Officials said assailants cut through a fence surrounding the settlement of Itamar on Friday, entered the home of the Fogel family and killed the parents - Udi, 36, and Ruth, 35, - and three of their children, Yoav, 11, Elad, 4 and 3-month-old Hadas.

An older daughter who was out with friends came home and discovered the carnage.

The attack took place shortly after the family finished the weekly dinner celebrating the Jewish Sabbath.

Israel indirectly blamed the Palestinian government for the carnage.

Israel has long contended that Palestinian textbooks and official media are full of hatred toward the Jewish state, and that killers of Israelis are often glorified.

Israeli troops continued with a second day of raids in Palestinian villages around Itamar, which has poor relations with its Arab neighbours.

Officials said some 20 suspects were in custody, though there was no word on whether any were believed to be the killers.

The Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, a near-defunct militant group that has loose ties to Fatah, claimed responsibility for the attack. But neither Israeli nor Palestinians officials took the claim seriously

In retaliation, Israel announced that a special team of Cabinet ministers led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approved the construction of up to 500 new homes in Jewish settlements.

One Israeli official, speaking on condition of anonymity under government regulations, said the construction was meant to dissuade "anyone who thinks that with knives, Jews will leave their homes."

Jewish settlements are at the heart of the current impasse in peace efforts.

The Palestinians refuse to negotiate as long as Israel expands the enclaves, which are built on occupied territories claimed by the Palestinians.

SHOTLIST:

1. Wide shot of Labour leader Shimon Peres at event

2. Peres walking to camera

3. SOUNDBITE (English) Shimon Peres, Leader of Labour Party:

"Well, I'm very glad about the decision of the Likud Party, where a majority supported Prime Minister Sharon to move ahead with the plan of disengagement and create a national union government with the participation of the Labour Party. I think it's a good day, I believe it's a good start. I hope we shall be able and ready to move ahead in the direction of peace. It's not simple, it's not easy, but it is promising and the right step. I got, this morning, a call from the prime minister inviting me, my party, to join in the government. The bureau of the party will meet tomorrow night and I shall ask the permission to start the negotiations and I hopefully shall be able to start the negotiations, that also."

4. Wide shot of Peres talking to media

STORYLINE:

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon invited the Labour Party into his governing coalition on Friday, a day after winning approval from the ruling Likud Party to bring its traditional rival back into the government, Labour leader Shimon Peres said.

Sharon called Labour leader Shimon Peres early on Friday to invite him to open negotiations about forming a new coalition, Peres told APTN.

Peres welcomed the move, saying: "I think it's a good day, I believe it's a good start."

He said he would seek permission from his party's bureau on Saturday night to start negotiations to join the coalition.

Israel Radio said Sharon also planned to invite the religious parties United Torah Judaism and Shas into the coalition.

Sharon needs Labour's support to shore up his coalition government and push forward with his plan to withdraw from the Gaza Strip next year.

Hard-line opposition has left Sharon with a minority coalition of just 40 seats in the 120-member parliament.

English/Nat

Israel's opposition Likud party has accused Prime Minister Shimon Peres' government of planning to divide Jerusalem to buy peace with the Palestinians.

The claim, denied by the ruling Labour Party, raises an explosive issue in the run-up to elections in May.

Jerusalem has become the jewel in the political crown of the Israeli elections with the

Opposition Likud party basing their election campaign on the future of city.

Likud has accused Shimon Peres' government of trying to divide Jerusalem as part of the peace process negotiations with the Palestinian Authority.

The opposition is hoping to strike a chord with the allegations.

SOUNDBITE: (In English)

"Jerusalem is not only the heart of the Jewish people, not only the heart of the current debate, its not only the heart of all our aspirations, but Jerusalem also happens to encapsulate the myriad concessions that this government is prepared to make on other

fronts."

SUPER CAPTION: Benjamin Netanyahu, Opposition Likud party leader

Jerusalem Mayor Ehud Olmert leant his support to the Likud denunciation.

SOUNDBITE: (In English)

"The government that is already negotiating about the future of Jerusalem that is allowing Jerusalem in fact to be divided today, such a government will surely give up the remainder of the territories, the Golan Heights, compromise on water and security."

SUPER CAPTION: Benjamin Netanyahu, Opposition Likud leader.

Likud believes that the future of Jerusalem could be a weak area for the government.

At the weekly Israeli cabinet meeting, ministers tried to plan how to react to the Likud campaign.

Afterwards, the a government spokesman angrily denied the government would ever divide Jerusalem.

SOUNDBITE: (In English)

"The Prime Minister emphasised that the entire cabinet is united on the principle that Jerusalem should not be divided and a negation to the contrary should be considered incitement."

SUPER CAPTION: Shmuel Hollander, Cabinet secretary.

Part of the government's problem is the Palestinians' continued insistence that Jerusalem will become the capital of their future Palestinian state.

But Palestinian leaders condemned the Likud campaign, which they fear could damage the peace process.

SOUNDBITE: (In English)

"Jerusalem is on the agenda for permanent status negotiations it is not a unilateral issue, it is not an Israeli elections issue, and a basic Palestinian right that has to be resolved on the basis of international law and on the basis of the land for peace agreement."

SUPER CAPTION: Hanan Ashrawi, member of Palestinian Legislative Council

Jerusalem city was reunited under Israeli rule after the 1967 war.

Likud's decision to concentrate on the Jerusalem issue is viewed as an attempt to attract public opinion and elevate its rating in the polls.

Jerusalem/Ramallah, Israel, 18th February, 1996

1. Pullout from the Tower of David into Likud campaign launch

2. SOUNDBITE: Benjamin Netanyahu, Opposition Likud party leader

3. Cutaway of Mayor of Jerusalem, Ehud Olmert

4. SOUNDBITE: Benjamin Netanyahu, Opposition Likud party leader

5. Cutaway of press at launch

6. Wide shot of The Opposition Party members at launch

7. Close up of Placard with slogan "Peres will divide Jerusalem"

8. Exteriors of Prime Minister's Office

9. Shimon Peres walking into cabinet meeting

10. Cabinet meeting

11. Cutaway cameraman

12. SOUNDBITE: Shmuel Hollander, Cabinet Secretary

13. Dome of the Rock

14. SOUNDBITE: Hanan Ashrawi, member of Palestinian Legislative Council

15. Wide shot of Al Aksa, pulls out to wide of Jerusalem

STORYLINE

Israel on Monday moved closer to a bruising election campaign that will decide the future of peace talks with Syria and the Palestinians, and new polls showed the moderate foreign minister, Tzipi Livni, in a surprisingly close race with hard-line opposition leader Benjamin Netanyahu.

President Shimon Peres began the countdown to new elections in a speech at the opening of the winter session of parliament in Jerusalem, a day after Livni gave up her attempts to form a new governing coalition.

Peres said elections were inevitable after consulting with the country's other political parties and concluding that no one had the support to form a government.

Parliament now has three weeks to dissolve itself.

The vote, Israel's third in six years, would take place three months later.

Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, who is being forced from office by a series of corruption investigations, said he would remain in office as a caretaker in the meantime.

Israel's ceremonial president is meant to be a unifying figure in this divided country, and Peres used the occasion to appeal to the parties to work together.

But almost immediately, the deep signs of division were evident.

Speaking to the same session, Netanyahu unofficially launched his campaign by staking out hardline positions on peace talks with Syria and the Palestinians.

The speech prompted repeated heckling by dovish and Arab lawmakers.

He said that if elected, Israel would keep "defensible borders", and he pledged to retain the Golan Heights.

That refusal would make an Israel-Syria agreement impossible.

Israel captured the Golan, a strategic plateau overlooking northern Israel, in the 1967 Mideast war.

Netanyahu also said Israel would have to keep large swaths of the West Bank as part of any agreement with the Palestinians, and that all of Jerusalem will remain in Israel's hands.

Netanyahu also said no Palestinian refugees would be allowed into Israel under any deal.

Such positions all but rule out a peace agreement.

The Palestinians want all of the West Bank as part of an independent state, with east Jerusalem as their capital.

Israel captured both areas in the 1967 war.

They also say Palestinians who were made refugees following Israel's establishment, and their descendants, should be allowed to return to lost properties.

Livni, who has been Israel's chief peace negotiator with the Palestinians over the past year, says Israel must find a settlement to all outstanding issues, including borders, Jerusalem and the refugees.

Netanyahu's Likud Party had a poor showing in the last elections and holds only 12 seats of parliament's 120 seats.

The new polls show the Likud more than doubling its strength, while Livni's Kadima holds steady.

A poll by the Dahaf Research Institute showed Livni's Kadima Party winning 29 seats, the same number it has now, and Netanyahu's Likud taking 26 if elections were held today.

A TNS Teleseker survey gave Kadima 31 seats to Likud's 29.

The Dahaf poll of 500 people had a margin of error of 4.5 percent. The TNS survey of more than 900 people put the maximum margin of error at two parliamentary seats.

Neither party would have enough seats to form a government on its own.

The surveys showed an even split between the country's hawkish and centre-left blocs, signalling continued deadlock that paralysed peacemaking in the past.

Livni took the helm of the Kadima Party last month in a primary election forced by multiple corruption allegations against Olmert.

She tried to avoid elections by keeping the current government intact, but one partner, the 12-seat ultra-Orthodox Shas Party, pressed new demands she said she could not accept.

SHOTLIST:

1. Wide shot of Knesset members in session

2. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert with Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and Defence Minister Ehud Barak

3. SOUNDBITE (Hebrew) Shimon Peres, Israeli President: ++Part overlaid with cutaway of Knesset members++

"It is in your hands, knesset members, to run a legitimate and dignified political struggle which is not dragged to verbal violence and will not encourage hate and will not be tempted to damning propaganda."

4. Knesset members in session

5. Wide of Olmert at podium, Peres seated beside him

6. SOUNDBITE (Hebrew) Ehud Olmert, Israeli Prime Minister: ++Part overlaid with cutaway of Knesset members++

"The threats against the citizens of Israel do not wait for political moves. The fear of terror cannot be delayed just because a few of us are busy with elections. The continuous rearming of Hamas and arms smuggling in the north and south do not stop because we are busy with elections. The Iranian leaders continue to threaten and prepare weapons of destruction also when Israel holds elections. To all these I highly recommend not to test our patience and not to test our capabilities."

7. Knesset members in session

8. SOUNDBITE (Hebrew) Benjamin Netanyahu, Likud Party leader: ++Part overlaid with cutaway of Olmert and Livni listening++

"In any future political agreement we will retain defensible borders for the state of Israel. We will not return to '67 lines. The Jordan Valley, Judean Desert and the Golan Heights will continue to serve as the state of Israel's eastern security belt."

9. Knesset members at end of session

10. Peres leaving session

11. SOUNDBITE (English) Yaron Dekel, Israel Broadcasting Authority (IBA) political analyst:

"According to the polls, it seems likely that Mr. Netanyahu, the head of the Likud Party and Miss Livni, the head of Kadima Party, the party of the Prime Minister, are running neck to neck but this is a very early stage of the campaign. It hasn't started yet, so we still don't know exactly what will be the outcome of the early elections."

12. Dekel walking away

SHOTLIST:

1. Pan from posters to Israeli Prime Minister's office

2. Interior Security Minster, Avi Dichter, arriving for meeting

3. Israeli Vice Prime Minister Shimon Peres, arriving at meeting

4. SOUNDBITE (English) Shimon Peres, Israeli Vice Prime Minister:

"Let's wait for (the) arrival (of) information. I think what's now being published are pieces and speculations, it's not a full picture. But that's a subject that cannot be debated in a real way before the time will arrive for it.

(Q: Are you optimistic about this case?)

"I think it will be complicated but finally I am sure we will be released... they will be released."

5. Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, arriving for meeting

6. Cabinet meeting, zoom as Olmert convenes meeting

7. Various of meeting

8. Wide of demonstration outside Israeli Prime Minister's office as the weekly cabinet meeting ongoing, demonstrators holding banners

9. Protesters holding figures of Israel Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, defence minister Amir Peretz and army chief of staff Lieutenant General Dan Halutz

10. Mid of protesters

11. Pan from donkey to protester

12. SOUNDBITE (English) Eliad Shraga, lawyer, head of the Movement for Quality Government:

We do demand that the Prime Minister and the government will form a state inquiry commission which will be nominated by the supreme court, and not by the government. This is why we are here, this is what we do demand. We don't trust the government. We trust the supreme court, we trust that the chief justice will nominate an objective commission."

explaining they do not trust the government inquiry therefore they are demanding a state inquiry committee that will be independent from the government institutions.

13. medium shot of rally

14. Mid of donkeys, protesters

15. Mid of pictures of the captured Israeli soldiers

16. Demonstrators marching with figures of Olmert, Peretz and Halutz

STORYLINE

The Israeli Cabinet on Sunday authorised an inquiry into the government's handling of the recent war in Lebanon, capping weeks of disagreements over the scope of the investigation.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert convened his cabinet in Jerusalem where the inquiry was approved by a 20-2 vote with one abstention, the government said.

The inquiry, headed by a retired judge, will look at decisions by political and military leaders.

However, it will not have full judicial powers to dismiss officials, despite widespread public calls for a broader inquiry.

Olmert told the Cabinet that the inquiry would have authorities comparable to those of a state commission.

On arrival at the Cabinet meeting Israeli Vice Prime Minister Shimon Peres, had cautioned against speculation, saying that so far there was "not a full picture" but he expressed some optimism at the prospect of release of the captured Israeli soldiers.

"I think it will be complicated but finally I am sure we will be released... they will be released," Peres said.

Olmert, the government and the army have faced strong criticism for their handling of the 34-day war against Hezbollah based on accusations that the government accepted a UN-brokered ceasefire without crushing the militia or freeing two soldiers captured by Hezbollah at the start of the fighting.

While the cabinet meeting was taking place, dozens of protester gathered outside the Prime Minister's office to demand an inquiry commission be nominated by the supreme court, and not by the government.

"We don't trust the government. We trust the supreme court, we trust that the chief justice will nominate an objective commission," said Eliad Shraga, lawyer, head of the Movement for Quality Government, which recently led several protests against the government's handling of the war.

The protesters also called for Olmert, Israeli Defence Minister Amir Peretz and army chief of staff Lieutenant General Dan Halutz to resign.

SHOTLIST:

1. Pan from media to Shinui party meeting

2. Media

3. SOUNDBITE (English) Yossef Lapid, former Justice Minister

"The opposition will continue to support (Israeli Prime Minister Ariel) Sharon on the issue of the withdrawal from Gaza. On all other issues we will be a very fighting and alert opposition."

4. Shinui members at meeting

5. Shimon Peres, opposition leader and Labor party leader, in office

6. SOUNDBITE (English) Shimon Peres, Labor party leader

"I think so, I mean there'll be an approach to Labor during the next week to join in a new national union government. Labor is for a national union government because we think that the year of 2005 should not be spent on internal skirmishes of the parties or elections in the nation. I think the year must be noted not for politics but for policies."

8. Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon at news briefing

9. SOUNDBITE (Hebrew) Ariel Sharon, Israel Prime Minister

"There are two choices clearly, unity government or elections. I hope my friends will understand we have reached this point and there's no other choice."

10. Briefing

STORYLINE:

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said on Thursday he planned to replace his minority government with a broad coalition to push through his Gaza withdrawal plan and promised not to launch attacks on Palestinians unless provoked.

Sharon's governing coalition has disintegrated in recent days after the premier fired the moderate Shinui Party for voting against the budget,

leaving him with only 40 seats in the 120-member Knesset.

If Sharon cannot patch together a new coalition, he would be forced to call early elections, endangering his plans to pull out of Gaza next year.

Former Israeli Justice Minister and Shinui Party leader Yossef Lapid says that his party will still provide a "safety net" for Sharon's disengagement plan.

Lapid emphasised this position on Thursday, although his party is no longer a part of the government.

On Thursday the leader of the Labor party and head of the opposition Shimon Peres said that his party is willing to discuss forming a unity government with Sharon.

Meanwhile Sharon said that he would court the opposition Labor Party and ultra-Orthodox parties in a bid to shore up his minority coalition.

As the Israeli Prime Minister sought to keep his crumbling coalition together he called on politicians to support the government.

He reiterated his intention to carry out his "disengagement" plan, under which Israel would withdraw from the Gaza Strip and four small West Bank settlements next year.

The plan had originally been intended as a unilateral action, but Sharon has spoken in recent days of coordinating the pullout with the Palestinians.

However, such meetings would have to wait until after Palestinian elections on January 9.

T/I: 10:03:13

Benjamin Netanyahu formally took office as Israel's new prime minister on Wednesday (19/6) in a brief handover ceremony with outgoing premier Shimon Peres.

SHOWS:

JERUSALEM, ISRAEL 19/6

Exterior Prime Minister's office

Former Prime Minister, Shimon Peres and Prime Minister elect, Benjamin Netanyahu at microphones

Peres SOT (in Hebrew): "First of all, I wish the prime minister every success, although we won't share the same failures..."

CU cake (laughter)

Peres SOT continues: "We have challenges to face and we will face them in a democratic way. You are torn between two gates; one is the people's will, and the second is the target of the state. You, as Prime Minister, have to serve the people and the best gift I am able to give you is this wonderful staff."

WS of table

Audience applause

Netanyahu SOT (in Hebrew): (picture quality as incoming) "I share your appreciation of this staff and I plan to work with them in the future in order to serve the country. I want to thank you (Peres) for your contribution to the state of Israel, as a citizen, as a leader, and as a son of the Jewish people. What unites us and what unites us all is the will to see the state of Israel marching forward to the 21st century with strength and reaching peace with our neighbours. I am convinced that we can prove that the Prime Minister and opposition leader can work together despite the disagreements."

They make a toast

Clink of glasses

Shake hands

WS gathering

2.42

SHOTLIST:

++NIGHT SHOT++

1. Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni arriving at Israeli president's residence

++INTERIOR SHOTS++

2. Livni arriving to meet with Israeli President Shimon Peres

3. Peres and Livni taking their seats for photo opportunity, as Peres officially tasks Livni with forming new government, handing her the folder with the official appointment

STORYLINE:

Israel's president formally picked Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni to form a new government on Monday.

President Shimon Peres made the expected announcement on Monday evening after consulting all of Israel's political parties.

The minute-long ceremony took place at the Israeli president's residence in Jerusalem.

After Peres handed her the folder with the official appointment, Livni agreed to officially accept the role and form a new government.

Livni now has 42 days to put together a coalition government.

Livni, 50, once an agent in the Mossad spy agency, has pledged to pursue peace with the Palestinians and Syria.

She was the automatic choice as prime minister-designate after she won a party primary to succeed Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.

He resigned because of multiple corruption allegations.

Even before Peres gave her the official title of prime minister-designate on Monday evening, Livni was already conducting intensive talks with party leaders over their terms to join a coalition.