JERUSALEM — Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon suffered a "significant" stroke Wednesday after being brought to the hospital from his ranch in the Negev desert, a hospital official said.

Dr. Shlomo Mor-Yosef, director general of Hadassah Hospital, said Sharon was put under general anesthetic and was receiving breathing assistance while doctors assessed his condition.

Cabinet Secretary Yisrael Maimon said Sharon's authorities have been transferred to Vice Premier Ehud Olmert.

Sharon arrived by ambulance from his ranch in southern Israel and was taken into the emergency room, reporters at the scene said.

Israeli media reported that Sharon apparently suffered a second stroke or possibly a heart ailment, complaining of pressure or pain in his chest. Channel 2 TV said he was taken into the hospital on a stretcher.

An announcement by the prime minister's office said Sharon, 77, was taken to Jerusalem's Hadassah Hospital, where he was scheduled to undergo the heart procedure Thursday.

Sharon's office said his personal physician was with him, and the Israeli leader was fully conscious. He was being taken by ambulance, a drive of more than an hour from his ranch in the Negev Desert in Israel's south, instead of by helicopter.

(Story continues below)

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Sharon is extremely overweight, but doctors checking him after the mild stroke found him otherwise in good health. Doctors said he would not suffer long-term effects from the stroke, but they discovered a birth defect in his heart that apparently contributed to the stroke.

Channel 10 News quoted Sharon's spokesman as saying the symptoms were not severe, and it reported that he was feeling pressure or pain in his chest. The TV station had a car following Sharon's entourage, transmitting live pictures from a cellular telephone of cars racing up the dark highway.

Another hospital, Soroka in Beersheba, is much closer to the ranch, and Israeli media were concluding that his condition was not serious. Channel 10 said the heart procedure might be advanced.

Since the stroke, Sharon has been taking blood thinners to try to prevent a recurrence of the clotting that caused the stroke.

Sharon was to check into the Jerusalem hospital on Thursday for the procedure — repairing a tiny hole between the upper chambers of his heart. Doctors said the blood clot that briefly lodged in Sharon's brain on Dec. 18, causing the stroke, made its way through the hole and to a cranial artery.

Doctors plan to use a catheter to plant a patch on the hole, which is about one-eighth of an inch. Sharon is to turn over his authority to Olmert for about three hours while under general anesthetic and during recovery, Sharon's office said.

It will be the first time an Israeli prime minister has relinquished authority because of illness.

There was no official word on whether the catheterization would be performed on schedule.

Yo....

It is getting crazy up in here!!!!

Lord Jesus, I pray for the peace of Israel.

I thought I had posted somewhere on this site that I felt the Lord was changing world leaders - many leaders of nations are going to be changed so that the Lord can quicken his plans.

When I saw the breaking news about Sharon a few weeks ago, I knew that this is something that will change things in Israel to bring about many, many things that are foretold of.

Jan 4, 4:31 PM EST

Ruler of Dubai Dies While in Australia

By LARA SUKHTIAN
Associated Press Writer

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) -- Sheik Maktoum bin Rashid Al Maktoum, the emir of Dubai and one of the world's foremost owners and breeders of thoroughbred horses, died Wednesday in Australia. He was 62.

Sheik Maktoum, also prime minister of the United Arab Emirates, was succeeded by his younger brother, Crown Prince Sheik Mohammed, the defense minister of the UAE, a federation of seven Gulf states.

Sheik Maktoum, visiting Australia for the prestigious Magic Millions yearling sales, died at the exclusive Palazzo Versace hotel on Australia's Gold Coast, police said.

Authorities in Dubai would not give the cause of death. Australian police would say only that the emir did not die of suspicious causes. Australian media speculated he died of a heart attack, and Al-Jazeera TV said he was believed to have a history of heart problems.



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Sheik Maktoum owned hundreds of thoroughbreds and won some of the biggest races in the world.

Working with another brother, Sheik Hamdan, the Maktoum family put Dubai on the world racing map. The brothers founded Dubai- and British-based Godolphin Racing Inc., one of the world's most successful stables, and created the Dubai World Cup, the world's richest race with a $6 million purse.

"The Maktoums have such a passion for the sport, it's unbelievable," Kiaran McLaughin, who spent nine years training horses in Dubai for the family, said from his winter base in Florida. "It's a great loss for our industry and for the whole world. He was a great man, a kind and bright man. It's a very sad day."

Sheik Maktoum owned Gainsborough Stud Management - with one farm in Kentucky, another in England and two in Ireland. Standing at stud at Gainsborough Stud at Newbury in southeast England are Elusive Quality and Quiet American, sires of Kentucky Derby winners Smarty Jones and Real Quiet.

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"We would concur with others around the world that a visionary leader has been lost," said D.G. Van Clief Jr., the commissioner of the National Thoroughbred Racing Association and president of Breeders' Cup Ltd.

He said that "there has been no single family in recent years more influential in the conduct of the racing and breeding than the Maktoum family."

Sheik Maktoum owned top flight horses such as Breeders' Cup Turf winner Fantastic Light, English 2000 Guineas winner Shadeed and Irish Derby winner Shareef Dancer.

"Sheik Maktoum made a hugely significant contribution to the sport of horse racing and British thoroughbred racing and breeding in particular," said Julian Richmond-Watson, senior steward of the Jockey Club in Britain.

The Godolphin stable has won nearly every major race outside the United States, but the Maktoums have said their biggest goal is to win the Kentucky Derby.

"He had over 200 horses in training and a lot of yearlings still to come in," said Joe Mercer, the sheik's longtime racing manager. He really enjoyed his racing. He knew what was going on and was a very good man to work for. He was a good loser and a good winner."

Dubai declared 40 days of mourning, with government offices shutting down for seven days beginning Wednesday. The stock exchanges in Dubai and Abu Dhabi ceased trading, and many shops and businesses closed. In Dubai, the authorities said Sheik Maktoum's funeral would be Thursday.

Dubai TV interrupted its programs to show a picture of the sheik smiling, as a Muslim cleric read verses of the Quran, Islam's holy book.

"The United Arab Emirates today lost a historical leader who devoted his life to establishing the United Arab Emirates and enhancing its structure and the welfare of its people," the government said.

Sheik Maktoum was born at home in Shindagha, near the mouth of Dubai Creek, and educated at a British university. He succeeded his father in 1990 as ruler of Dubai.

He tended to leave the day-to-day government of Dubai to his younger brother, but he took an active interest in foreign policy. He often represented the country abroad during the years when the former president, Sheik Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, was ailing.

When Sheik Zayed died in 2004, Sheik Maktoum became acting president for a few hours until the new leader, Sheik Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, was proclaimed president.

"Sheik Maktoum's death is a huge loss to Dubai but also to the world of horse racing. He was at the very center of everything Godolphin has achieved," Godolphin racing manager Simon Crisford said.

FROM WND'S JERUSALEM BUREAU
Rocket barrage
'if Sharon dies'1 terror leader threatening life of replacement prime minister

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: January 4, 2006
7:36 p.m. Eastern


By Aaron Klein
© 2006 WorldNetDaily.com



Ariel Sharon

JERUSALEM – Palestinian groups in the Gaza Strip are watching the news regarding Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's deteriorating health carefully and will celebrate with Qassam rocket firings at Jewish towns if Sharon dies, terror leaders told WorldNetDaily.

One militant leader threatened the life of Sharon's temporary replacement, Deputy Minister Ehud Olmert, who was installed as prime minister just hours ago.


"I am ready with my candies and my rockets and praying to Allah that Sharon dies. We have prepared a celebratory barrage of rockets ready to fire into Israel on the occasion of the death of our enemy," said Abu Abir, spokesman for the Popular Resistance Committees, an umbrella group of Hamas and Islamic Jihad terrorists responsible for firing hundreds of Qassam rockets and mortars at Jewish towns.

Hamas leader Dr. Mahmoud al-Zahar told WND Sharon's condition "plunges the Israeli political scene into chaos, which could bring about an equal response from the Palestinians."

Sharon tonight was rushed to the hospital and suffered a "significant stroke" that caused "massive bleeding to the brain," according to officials at Jerusalem's Hadassah University Hospital, which is treating the Israeli leader. Sharon is undergoing emergency surgery after being anesthetized and placed on a breathing machine, one of Sharon's attending physicians told reporters.

Executive powers have been officially transferred to Olmert. According to Knesset law, Olmert can serve for a maximum 100 days, after which new elections would be held.

Sources close to Sharon told WND the prime minister's condition is life threatening, and that there was a significant chance he might not survive.

"We are not hopeful," said a senior Sharon aide.

One senior political leader said he has information Sharon is "clinically dead. He is on life support machines in the operating theater that can keep him alive for an extended period, but doctors are pessimistic he can return to normal functioning."

Celebrations reportedly are underway in the Gaza Strip, with families distributing sweets and gunmen shooting into the air.

"I personally am waiting to celebrate. I have my fingers crossed," Abu Abir said. "Sharon was one of our biggest enemies."

Abu Abir told WND now that Olmert is serving as prime minister "he is moved up on our list of targets. We will target Olmert with a lot of might."

Al-Zahar said he is hoping Sharon survives.

"Sharon's new party Kadima was good for us. They made clear in no uncertain terms that part of their platform was more withdrawals from the West Bank and from Jerusalem. His passing from the political scene now places all of that in jeopardy. We don't know what are the policies of Olmert. Whether he supports giving us the West Bank and Jerusalem."



Sharon this past summer withdrew Israel's Jewish communities from the Gaza Strip in spite of fierce opposition from members of his own Likud party. He recently announced he is leaving Likud to start his own "centrist" party, Kadima, prompting new elections that were scheduled for March. Since then, multiple Kadima members have told reporters the new party is looking to change Israel's borders and may withdraw from parts of the West Bank.

But Israeli commentators across the political spectrum criticized Kadima as a one man party and warned Sharon's health could negatively impact the party's chances of winning upcoming elections.

Sharon suffered a stroke last month. Doctors were planning to perform an invasive cardiac procedure tomorrow to close a microscopic hole in the Israeli leaders heart.

His exact condition tonight is unknown.


http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article....RTICLE_ID=48203

Who has noticed that Mr. Sharon is 'wounded' in the head?
It may be very significant if after hearing that Sharon is not expected to recover,
he actually makes a full and 'miraculous' recovery!
Is this worth watching a little more closely?

Notice that the stroke was called 'significant'. How significant is this?

Watching............Meshuganah

I dunno...that's not supposed to happen until after the seals and trumpets, and since I haven't seen too many of the things we're supposed to see, I doubt it's the case.

On the other hand, his more radical buddy rightwinger Benjamin Netanyahu might take the helm and boot all of the Palestinians out of Gaza and the West bank, and become the first horseman of the apocalypse. Let's review.

White horse - Triumphant conquerer. This si almost universal symbology.

'given a crown' - has to be preceded by someone who could have conquered but didn't, and THEN after getting the crown, goes and starts his work going forth to conquer.

carrys a bow - ranged weapon, used from afar, maybe nuclear. Also, parthian shot, a parting bow shot from which one is unable to recover.

Also, if this happens, China and Russia could buddy up with the Islamic nations in exchange for unobstructed oil supply and smash Israel from the north. Oddly enough, they're both RED. One of em has a butt load of money and wants to buy weapons, the other is dirt poor and makes weapons, they both hate the west, and they are both nuclear capable. Heh, talk about Gog and it's big red horese, huh?

On a further note:

THIS COULD BE THE BEGINNING OF THE SEALS! JESUS MAY BE COMMING VERY SOON! MARANATHA!

Hey, I'd rather be found awaiting Him than not caring either way. In fact, I think we're all better off hoping that it's starting. Better to yearn than to yawn, ya know?

Ian the new guy

Below is a site where you can go to get an up to date account on his Ariel Sharon's condition.

http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?pag...d=1123495333303
Kim

Remeber the word mazinaw recieved?

http://www.christian-forum.net/index.php?showtopic=3274

Isaiah 40

1 Comfort, comfort my people,
says your God.
2 Speak tenderly to Jerusalem,
and proclaim to her
that her hard service has been completed,
that her sin has been paid for,
that she has received from the LORD's hand
double for all her sins.

3 A voice of one calling:
"In the desert prepare
the way for the LORD [a] ;
make straight in the wilderness
a highway for our God. [b]

4 Every valley shall be raised up,
every mountain and hill made low;
the rough ground shall become level,
the rugged places a plain.

5 And the glory of the LORD will be revealed,
and all mankind together will see it.
For the mouth of the LORD has spoken."

6 A voice says, "Cry out."
And I said, "What shall I cry?"
"All men are like grass,
and all their glory is like the flowers of the field.

7 The grass withers and the flowers fall,
because the breath of the LORD blows on them.
Surely the people are grass.

8 The grass withers and the flowers fall,
but the word of our God stands forever."

9 You who bring good tidings to Zion,
go up on a high mountain.
You who bring good tidings to Jerusalem, [c]
lift up your voice with a shout,
lift it up, do not be afraid;
say to the towns of Judah,
"Here is your God!"

10 See, the Sovereign LORD comes with power,
and his arm rules for him.
See, his reward is with him,
and his recompense accompanies him.

11 He tends his flock like a shepherd:
He gathers the lambs in his arms
and carries them close to his heart;
he gently leads those that have young.

12 Who has measured the waters in the hollow of his hand,
or with the breadth of his hand marked off the heavens?
Who has held the dust of the earth in a basket,
or weighed the mountains on the scales
and the hills in a balance?

13 Who has understood the mind [d] of the LORD,
or instructed him as his counselor?

14 Whom did the LORD consult to enlighten him,
and who taught him the right way?
Who was it that taught him knowledge
or showed him the path of understanding?

15 Surely the nations are like a drop in a bucket;
they are regarded as dust on the scales;
he weighs the islands as though they were fine dust.

16 Lebanon is not sufficient for altar fires,
nor its animals enough for burnt offerings.

17 Before him all the nations are as nothing;
they are regarded by him as worthless
and less than nothing.

18 To whom, then, will you compare God?
What image will you compare him to?

19 As for an idol, a craftsman casts it,
and a goldsmith overlays it with gold
and fashions silver chains for it.

20 A man too poor to present such an offering
selects wood that will not rot.
He looks for a skilled craftsman
to set up an idol that will not topple.

21 Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
Has it not been told you from the beginning?
Have you not understood since the earth was founded?

22 He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth,
and its people are like grasshoppers.
He stretches out the heavens like a canopy,
and spreads them out like a tent to live in.

23 He brings princes to naught
and reduces the rulers of this world to nothing.

24 No sooner are they planted,
no sooner are they sown,
no sooner do they take root in the ground,
than he blows on them and they wither,
and a whirlwind sweeps them away like chaff.

25 "To whom will you compare me?
Or who is my equal?" says the Holy One.

26 Lift your eyes and look to the heavens:
Who created all these?
He who brings out the starry host one by one,
and calls them each by name.
Because of his great power and mighty strength,
not one of them is missing.

27 Why do you say, O Jacob,
and complain, O Israel,
"My way is hidden from the LORD;
my cause is disregarded by my God"?

28 Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
The LORD is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
and his understanding no one can fathom.

29 He gives strength to the weary
and increases the power of the weak.

30 Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men stumble and fall;

31 but those who hope in the LORD
will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.

I have always believed that the rider of the white horse was the Anti-Christ!
Just Maybe?????
justaservant

I have to tell you that I dropped my sandwich when I read this first sentence . . . !

While I don't believe at all that Sharon is the antichrist, it is interesting that his name means "Lion of God" or "Altar hearth."

Perhaps but I do feel the antichrist suffers a wound that came by violence against his person.

I thought the same thing too Jim. Hmm.....don't know. Found this:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Four_Hors..._the_Apocalypse

Welcome Ian!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I was just watching the news and Bush's reaction to Ariel Sharon...they pointed out in Bush's speech he was referring to him in PAST TENSE. In the article it mentioned he was on life support. Somebody knows something I'm sure, they just haven't passed the real news yet.

Hamas firing rockets into Israel celebrating his death and wishing he was dead???!!! Horrible.

Pat Robertson says it was his punishment for dividing God's Holy Land.

Hi Marta, thanks for the welcome!

I've thought for sometime that the white horseman was the antichrist, but when I look at it, I've found nothing suggesting this. Based on the mathemtaic harmony of Revelation, and the name itself (Revelation - To Reveal...suggests possibly it's less complicated than we thought, since the revealing of something is usually to cast aside doubt and confusion) suggests that these are just signs of the times. That's not to say that we should drop our guard and worship or follow the white horseman, since Christian's aren't conquerers or particularly big on warmongering, but I don't think that we should label the first rider the antichrist. I wrote a topic called the 14 year endtime theory in current events that clarifys why. If we name him the antichrist, then the first christlike guy who nullifies the horsemen would almost immediately be named christ by the world. Sounds like a delusion that would deceive the very elect to me, especially if done with signs and wonders. I say, it aint the antichrist untilt he temple's rebuilt, and the guys his own butt on God's seat. Until then, the white horseman is just a horseman to me.

Marta- I just found this.....



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TROUBLE IN THE HOLY LAND
Ariel Sharon
clinically dead?
Local media make dire claim, doctor tries 'to refute the rumors'

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Posted: January 5, 2006
2:43 p.m. Eastern



© 2006 WorldNetDaily.com



Ariel Sharon

Despite doctors' attempts to counter media reports, local print and television stations in Israel are reporting Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is clinically dead following a massive stroke yesterday.

Sources tell Israel Insider Sharon "died" at 11 a.m. today local time, but Shlomo Mor-Yosef, director of Hadassah Hospital where the prime minister lies, denied reports of Sharon's death and says he is "serious but stable."

Local TV station Channel 10 reports those closest to Sharon as saying he has suffered "brain damage," which, Israel Insider contends, could mean the leader has suffered brain death, or lack of cerebral activity, while his heart continues to beat.

In updating reporters, however, Mor-Yosef said Sharon's pupils were responding to stimulation, which independent doctors said was a positive sign of independent brain activity, the Associated Press reported.


Doctors today said Sharon likely will be sedated for 72 hours. He underwent seven hours of surgery to stop brain hemorrhaging last night. Sharon's first stroke, a mild one, occurred Dec. 18.

"The prime minister is suffering from low intracranial pressure, and is heavily sedated," Mor-Yosef said. "He will be respirated for at least the next 24 hours. All the parameters that we can check are as expected, following an operation of this type."

Continued the doctor: "I came out to update you and to refute the rumors flooding the country," referring to claims that Sharon had already died and that the government is purposely delaying the news.

"Sharon is still alive," an aide in the intensive care unit told Ynet News. But Channel 10 quotes "someone very close" to the prime minister as saying that he had suffered "brain damage."

The TV station also is reporting that Sharon will be detached from one or more of his life-support machines in the next day or two, with the likelihood that he will not be able to survive without them.

The station also indicated the official death announcement is planned for Sunday, when world stock markets are closed.

Israel Insider claims its source said the Israeli Ministry of Defense in Tel Aviv was informed about noon today that Sharon "died during surgery."

The Israeli media is not alone in its claims.

One senior political leader told WND last night, while Sharon was on the operating table, he has information the Israeli leader is "clinically dead. He is on life support machines in the operating theater that can keep him alive for an extended period, but doctors are pessimistic he can return to normal functioning."

I was just listening to Bible Line on the tv and that preacher was saying that there is a bulge in the wailing wall that measures 28 inches out from the wall plane. He was explaining that when the muslems were clearing out the area known as Solomon's stables that the support for the temple plain has been seriously weakened. Muslems had done this to remove any remnents of the former Temples so that the Jews would not have any proof to take to court that they had a prior claim.
That wailing wall is the main support for the Arabian Mosque above it. If the wall goes the Mosque goes! The Temple Faithful are saying "Let it fall" They are ready with building material, priestly garments, and 2000 priests of the line of Kohen identified by DNA testing, ready.
All that is needed is a good solid shake! The seat for the Anti-Christ is under contruction right now!
justaservant

And red heifers are being bred for the daily sacrifice...
http://www.nationalreview.com/dreher/dreher041102.asp

Whoa....

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lov4all,

Good find! I wouldn't be suprised if we woke up to the news.....makes you wonder who ugly it is going to get over there soon.

This is an abomination of the worse kind! The red heifer is a old sacrifice practiced before Christ had died on the cross. But now that Christ has since been resurrected God has ended the need for animal sacrifices to wash away sins.

If this happens this will bring Armageddon. God won't stand for it

He is back in surgey after brain scan.

Pat Robertson said Ariel Sharon should not have divided God's land. People are shock and wanting him to apolize for saying it.
The news stations are saying "that is not a very Christain thing to say".
Kim

I don't know if this means anything or not, but I was watching the morning news today about his surgery. They have a shot from outside of his room looking in through the glass and on the glass to the right side of his head I swear I saw an image of a goat's head! It really shook me up! I wish I had tivo'd it to look back at it again, but I was sitting there dumfounded! eeek! Did anyone else catch that?

In the bible code, there is something about 08th January (which is Sunday in UK) 8 of Tevet 5766 (8th Jan 2006) - He departed for the terror, day of night for the UN . Shekel?????

I think Sharon's death will be announced over the weekend and something major will happen on the Sunday.

I went onto the Reuters news website and viewed the video and found this. Is it what you saw??

Tzeitel,

I just responded to your pm, but I'll put it here too so everyone else can see. No, that is not the image I saw. It was definitely from inside the hospital... he was on the left and the image was on the right of his head in the glass. It probably was a reflection of something... I have no idea, it was just really creepy. As I said to you, I probably should not have posted this because you don't know me from a whole in the wall... but I just feel so comfortable here, like I've known everyone forever. I don't know what else to say except, what I thought I saw... hope you don't think I'm a wackoo lunatic

Lisa

...looks more like grim reaper to me, or my over active imagination

The AC is supposed to have been wounded in the head by a 'sword'.........would a scalpel do?

By the way......has anyone noticed the number and strength of earthquakes around the world.........?


Meshuganah.

I don't think the antichrist will be an old Jewish man. Certainly not one who has served his country. His philandering with giving up the terrain that was supernaturally given them in the six day war of 1967 is all about a desperate effort to prevent future holocaust. Not only that he has a heart for his people. I always had the impression that the antichrist comes from a revived Roman empire, obviously a gentile. JMHO

Yeah-- I've been checking them out every morning and evening.... something is going on! Looks like something big (bigger than tsunami?? .... ) is going to happen soon. I keep praying for mercy and forgiveness ... he chandged his mind temporarily for Ninevah.... but it sure looks like somethings coming...

lovingHIM does a nice job keeping us posted here:

http://www.christian-forum.net/index.php?showtopic=3353

Its at the top of thread choices after you click on current events from the main forum.

I think I check this site every morning and evening lov4all!

So whenever Sharon passes on....this guy Olmert may take over after the elections. As of now he is the acting Prime Minister temporarily. I heard a few things about him on the news that made me cringe a bit. He was all for the Gaza Disengagement before Sharon was. This guy is not a weakling, but to me he seems to be more Muslim than Jewish? I mean from what I've heard he is all for the Palestinians.......color stupid, I don't know nothin!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ehud Olmert

Ehud Olmert (Hebrew: אהוד אולמרט; born September 30, 1945) is the current Acting Prime Minister of Israel. On January 4, 2006, prime ministerial powers were transferred to Olmert after Ariel Sharon suffered a serious hemorrhagic stroke. [1].

Olmert is the Deputy Prime Minister, the Finance Minister, and Minister of Industry, Trade and Labor, as well as being the Minister responsible for the Israel Lands Administration. He is currently a member of Ariel Sharon's Kadima party.

Background
Born in Binyamina in the British Mandate of Palestine (today the State of Israel), Ehud Olmert is a graduate of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem with degrees in psychology, philosophy and law. He has had his own successful law practice in Israel.

Olmert was first elected to the Knesset in 1973 at the age of 28 and was re-elected seven consecutive times. He served as Minister without portfolio responsible for minority affairs (1988-1990) and as Minister of Health (1990-1992). Between the years 1981-1988, he was a member of the Foreign Affairs and Security Committee and has also served on the Finance, Education and Defense Budget Committees.

From 1993 to 2003, Ehud Olmert served for two terms of office as Mayor of Jerusalem, during which time he devoted himself to the initiation and advancement of major projects in the city, the development and improvement of the education system and the development of road infrastructure. He also spearheaded the development of the light rail system in Jerusalem and the investment of millions of shekels in the development of mass transportation options for the City.

Ehud Olmert was elected as a member of the sixteenth Knesset in January 2003. He served as the head of the election campaign for the Likud Party in the elections, and subsequently was the chief negotiator of the coalition agreement. Following the elections he was appointed as Vice Prime Minister and Minister of Industry, Trade and Labor. From 2003-2004, he also served as Minister of Communications.

On August 7, 2005, Olmert was appointed as acting Finance Minister, replacing Benjamin Netanyahu, who had resigned in protest against the planned Israeli withdrawal from the Gaza Strip [2] [3]. 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, is a vocal supporter of the Gaza Pullout. "I voted against Menachem Begin," Olmert said after his appointment. "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." [4]

[edit]
Political orientation
Olmert's childhood included membership in the Beitar Youth Organization and dealing with the fact that his parents were often blacklisted and discriminated against due to their affiliation with the opposition to the long-ruling Mapai party. However, by the 1970s this was proving less detrimental to one's career as it was in the 1950s, and Olmert succeeded in opening a successful law partnership in Jerusalem.

In the 1970s Olmert was connected to a libel scandal involving well-known Jerusalem businessmen, organized crime, corrupt legislators, and retired General Rechavam Ze'evi. This affair was documented in investigative journalist Aryeh Avneri's Ha'tvusa in 1992. During the run-up to the Ze'evi libel suit, Olmert allegedly requested funds from the Likud Treasury for his defense fund, although his lawyers were from his own law firm, which would effectively constitute bribery.

All accusations against Olmert were eventually settled out of court. Some of his critics noted[citation needed] that Olmert hired numerous Likud activists to positions in the Jerusalem Municipality during his terms as mayor. Numerous cases of illegal housing construction both by Arab and Jewish firms continued throughout Olmert's term, and the phenomenon has plagued the city to this day.

One of the subjects that has damaged Olmert's standing among a large percentage of Likud supporters, far more than the generally tolerated political appointments, was his change of heart in regard to territorial concessions.

During PM Ariel Sharon's second term, Olmert was deputy prime minister and widely viewed as Sharon's right hand man. He was a vocal supporter of government policy and was the most important ally of Sharon during the September 2005 unilateral disengagement plan. When Sharon announced his leaving the Likud and the formation of a new party, Kadima, Olmert was one of the first to join him.

Mr. Olmert is married and is the father of four. He has for decades been a devoted fan of the Beitar Jerusalem football club.

Marta- Thanks for this background!



Psychology?... Philosophy?.... This could be interesting.....

New brain scan shows inprovement for Sharon.
Due to the stroke, I am wondering what will happen to the so called peace plan.
Kim

Jesus is the peace plan...Let the other be tossed in the fire!

Sharon Emerging From Coma; Moves Hand, Leg


Email this Story

Jan 9, 10:20 AM (ET)

By AMY TEIBEL




JERUSALEM (AP) - Doctors started weaning Prime Minister Ariel Sharon off the sedatives keeping him in a coma Monday, and the stricken leader immediately began breathing on his own and moved his right hand and right leg in response to stimulation.

Sharon's chief surgeon said the leader's response to pain stimulation was a "very important" sign, but it was too early to assess Sharon's ability to think and reason. It will take days to wean the premier off sedatives.

By the afternoon, Sharon had begun breathing on his own, though he was still on a respirator to assist him, said Dr. Shlomo Mor-Yosef, director of Hadassah Hospital, where Sharon is being treated.

http://apnews.myway.com/article/20060109/D8F17UGG0.html

Thursday January 12, 4:20 AM
Sharon still improving, medics stunned by recovery

AFP Photo


Ariel Sharon's chief surgeon said the Israeli leader had appeared aware of his younger son at his bedside, and expressed astonishment at his powers of recovery after a massive stroke.

The 77-year-old prime minister, whose fate is crucial to Israel and the wider Middle East, remains in intensive care but doctors said they had been able to all but stop the drugs that had been keeping him in an artificial coma.

His chief surgeon Felix Umansky told AFP it could take months to assess the full extent of the damage Sharon has suffered.

But his progress so far had defied all expectations, he said, amid suggestions by some of the prime minister's allies that he could even lead his new Kadima party at a March general election.

In a further sign that politics was beginning to return to normal, the main opposition Labour party ended its moratorium on political activity in the wake of Sharon's illness, declaring its election campaign up and running.

Umansky said Sharon was already moving "his four limbs" and showing stronger responses to stimulation.

"He is a very strong person. If someone had told me this was going to happen a week ago, I wouldn't have believed it," he told AFP.
Later in the day he said the prime minister had even appeared to respond to words of encouragement from his younger son Gilad.

"Gilad spoke to him. He said: 'I'm by your side, how are you?' and I had the clear impression that there was a reaction," Umansky told Israeli television.

Another member of the surgical team said he too was hopeful but added that first priority was to save the premier's life rather than worrying whether he would be able to resume his duties.

"Mr. Sharon is not out of danger ... but I'm optimistic," said Jose Cohen.

"Everyone is wondering if he will be able to resume his functions as prime minister but the important thing is that he continues to live as he's first and foremost a human being."

Umansky stressed that the surgical team could not be too hasty in fully ending the prime minister's sedation, and only when that had been done could they begin to gauge whether he would fully recover his faculties.

"The process is very slow and must be very well controlled. Nobody who is close to regaining consciousness likes feeling that he has a tube next to his windpipe or that he is immobilized," the Argentine doctor said.

As they try to rouse him from the coma, doctors have been conducting a series of tests to check Sharon's responses to pain and sound, but Umansky said it could be months before a full assessment of the damage could be made.

"To evaluate his higher intellectual functions could take weeks or months, although other functions, such as speaking will occur earlier," he said.

Israelis and world leaders have prepared themselves for the end of the Sharon era, fearing his demise would spark new turmoil in a region struggling to find the path to peace after decades of conflict.

For days doctors have doubted Sharon can again lead the country, leaving Israel staring into a political void.
However the more upbeat news emerging from the Hadassah has prompted some of Sharon's allies to suggest he could lead Kadima into the March 28 election.

"It will be wonderful if we really reach a situation in which he can function, communicate and be involved, and of course the minimum that we will want to do is to put him in his natural place," said Kadima's campaign manager Tzahi Hanegbi.

Sharon's old right-wing Likud and the centre-left Labour parties both denounced as a "cynical" manoeuvre the idea of placing someone who may well not be able to return to work at the top of the list.

Labour leader Amir Peretz told reporters that while he sympathized with Sharon, "the election is starting right now."

At a press conference near Tel Aviv, Peretz attacked both Sharon's expected successor Ehud Olmert and Likud leader Benjamin Netanyahu, pledging that only Labour could offer a genuine alternative to the current Kadima-Likud coalition.

"Bibi (Netanyahu) and Olmert are twins regarding economic issues, regarding their agenda about peace. That makes them identical twins," he said.

Meanwhile Sharon's fight for life has brought his long estranged, New York-based sister back in daily touch with his family, a report said Wednesday.

Yehudit (Dita) Mendel, 80, now "maintains daily contacts with Gilad, Sharon's son, who continuously updates her on her brother's condition" by telephone to her home in Brooklyn, the top-selling Yediot Aharonot daily said.

http://sg.news.yahoo.com/060111/1/3xtcn.html