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Labor, Meretz consider merger to create largest opposition party
By Mazal Mualem
Tags: Labor, Israel News 

Click here for exclusive Haaretz coverage of the elections in Israel

Labor is considering uniting with Meretz to create a 16-seat Knesset faction as it heads for the opposition benches.

"We're going to the opposition. The election results mean we must unite and rehabilitate ourselves in the opposition in order to resume the state's leadership," outgoing Social Affairs Minister Isaac Herzog said. "Labor will do some soul searching."
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Other senior Labor figures also spoke of the opposition as a foregone conclusion.

Sources close to Labor and Meretz leaders said Wednesday that if Yisrael Beiteinu were also in the opposition, the merger would position Labor chair Ehud Barak as opposition chairman, as head of the largest faction.

"If Lieberman does not join the government then I assume we will discuss a merger of sorts," Meretz chair MK Haim Oron said Wednesday.

Meretz chair MK Haim Oron said that since Labor would probably be in the opposition, the two factions should cooperate on economic and social issues and legislation initiatives.

"The left's crash is an emergency that requires us to unite forces," a Labor source said. "This is in the interest of both Labor and Meretz, which have a major role in rehabilitating the left."

Labor sources referred to Likud's stint in the opposition as a model. Likud crashed to 12 Knesset seats in the 2006 election.

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