Livni handed task of forming Israeli government

Israeli President Shimon Peres has officially handed the job of forming a new government to Tzipi Livni, setting her on her way to becoming the country’s second female prime minister. Responding immediately to her task, Livni has asked the leader of the right-wing Likud party, Benjamin Netanyahu, to join her coalition.

The former Mossad agent has 42 days to form a government. Failure to do so would almost certainly trigger early elections, which Netanyahu’s Likud is well-placed to win. Livni, currently foreign minister, narrowly won last week’s contest to replace Ehud Olmert as leader of the ruling Kadima party. Olmert was forced to resign amid corruption allegations.

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