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Israeli minister fired in vote-buying scandal
JERUSALEM (CNN) -- Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon fired his deputy infrastructure minister Tuesday in a move aimed at quieting a vote-buying scandal that has rocked his Likud party. Ra'anan Gissin, a spokesman for Sharon, told Israel Radio, "We had to let her go." Sharon sacked Naomi Blumenthal after she refused to answer questions from police. The Likud party selects its candidates for parliament through a vote of its central committee. Police are looking into charges that Blumenthal, who won a prominent slot on the Likud Knesset candidate list, paid for rooms at a posh Tel Aviv-area hotel in exchange for votes by central committee members. Sharon sent a letter to Blumenthal on Monday asking why she had refused to answer questions. "From the media, including things that were publicized by you, it appears that when you were interrogated by the Israeli police regarding the way in which you were elected to the Likud party 16th Knesset list you refused to answer the questions," the letter said. "I think that if there is doubt regarding the appropriateness of a person for election to public office, it's not just that he doesn't have the right to remain silent but he is obligated to reveal the circumstances of his election. Refusing to respond to police questions, therefore, is an intolerable and inappropriate act that undermines not just the person being interrogated but also an entire movement." Blumenthal responded Tuesday, but the Israeli daily newspaper Ha'aretz reported that Sharon regarded her explanation as inadequate and evasive. Polls show the vote-buying scandal has eroded Likud support among voters, and Sharon has vowed that anyone involved in vote buying will be stricken from the party's candidate list. At the beginning of the election campaign, polls projected that Sharon and the Likud party would win at least 40 seats in the Israeli parliament. Since the scandal broke, polls have shown Likud will be lucky to capture 35 seats. Blumenthal's firing does not automatically bar her from seeking a Knesset seat.
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