Ehud Barak, 4 other Knesset members to leave Labor party

By Shira Medding and Kevin Flower, CNN

January 17, 2011 -- Updated 1245 GMT (2045 HKT)

Ehud Barak, in this file picture dated December 27, 2010, plans to form his own independent faction.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• Israeli defense minister resigns from government
• Barak and 4 others say they are forming a new "centrist, Zionistic and democratic party"
• Some Labor party members have criticized Barak for staying in the coalition goverment

Jerusalem (CNN) -- Israeli Defense Minister and Labor party chairman Ehud Barak and four other members of the nation's parliament, the Knesset, are leaving the Labor faction and forming a new, independent faction.

Barak made the announcement Monday at a Knesset news conference. He told reporters that he and fellow Knesset members Matan Vilnai, Einat Wilf, Orit Noked and Shalom Simchon were leaving their party to form a new faction called Atzmaut, or Independence. Barak described it as a "centrist, Zionistic and democratic party."

Barak, who has come under withering criticism from some Labor party members for staying in the right-wing coalition government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, said the decision to bolt was due to the infighting within the party, which he claimed was "drifting left."

Labor ministers Avishai Braverman and Binyamin Ben Eliezer also said Monday they would resign from Netanyahu's government.

One of the major complaints directed against Barak was his refusal to quit the coalition after peace-making efforts with the Palestinians broke down in September.

A letter explaining the decision to leave, signed by Barak and the four Knesset members, took the Labor party to task, accusing its members of disloyalty.

"For a long time many of the Labor faction members act as if they do not see themselves as members of the faction," the letter said. "They refuse to accept the authority of the chosen chairman and they speak and act against (the) decision to be a part of the coalition."

Tzipi Livni, head of the opposition and the Kadima party, said in a news conference Monday that "I believe this is a day of hope for Israel because the break up of the Labor party will be followed by the break up of the government and we will have elections."

Eitan Cabel, a Labor Knesset member, denounced Barak's move in an Israeli radio interview Monday.

"Those leaving have decided to destroy the Labor party," he said. "They need to come and ask our forgiveness for everything they have done and said against the party. The Labor party has finished the way as an alternative. The curtain has come down on the glorious Labor movement."

Another Labor and cabinet member, Isaac Herzog, quit his position as minister of Welfare and Social Services Monday and told welcomed the announcement and said it was an opportunity to rebuild the Labor party.

"Today the Labor party got rid of a hump off its back. Barak's masquerade party is over," he said.

The Labor party, headed by Barak, held a total of 13 Knesset seats. With the announcement of a new faction, Barak and his colleagues are expected to stay in Netanyahu's governing coalition.

Assuming all of the eight remaining Labor party members quit the coalition, Netanyahu will be left with a coalition of 66 members, down from the current 74.

Yossi Verter, a veteran political analyst for the daily Haaretz newspaper, told CNN that despite likely losing some coalition seats Netanyahu has come out the winner in the political drama.

"Although Netanyahu loses eight members of his coalition, he gains a loyal and stable coalition of 66 members who no longer hand out deadlines," Verter said.

"There was a danger that the Labor party conference meeting in two months would take a decision to leave the coalition, leaving Netanyahu with an extreme right-wing coalition. Now he has a stable coalition with a defense minister he likes to work with and who is still welcome in Europe and the U.S. and has no personal political aspirations."

He added that Barak also benefitted from the move, winning himself more time as defense minister and the de facto foreign minister.

"Barak comes out of this as a winner as he took the initiative, he made the move, and this move leaves him in his position for as long as the coalition stands," Verter said.

Berlusconi denies ever paying for sex

From Hada Messia, CNN

January 17, 2011 -- Updated 1221 GMT (2021 HKT)

Silvio Berlusconi has been tried on at least 17 charges since first taking office as prime minister in 1994.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• NEW: Italy's prime minister says he is in a "stable affectionate relationship"
• He is under investigation over teen prostitute allegations
• He rejects the claim, calling it "degrading"
• The woman in question also denies having sex with him

Rome (CNN) -- Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said Monday he had never paid for sex, "not even once in my life," as Italian prosecutors investigate allegations that he had sex with a teenage prostitute.

"It is absurd only to think that I've paid to have rapport with a woman. It is something that I've never done, not even once in my life. It is something that I find degrading for my dignity," the scandal-prone but popular prime minister said on television.

Berlusconi is under investigation for allegedly having sex with the teenager, say prosecutors in Milan, who are linking the case to prostitution activity.

The teen, identified as nightclub dancer Karima El Mahrough and nicknamed Ruby, was 17 at the time of the alleged activity, from February till May.

She denied ever having sex with him in an interview recorded Saturday and broadcast Sunday. She also said she told everyone she was 24.

Berlusconi cited her denials in his own statement the next day.

"The underage person denies ever receiving advances from me and even less a sexual rapport with me, and she affirms that she introduced herself to everybody as a 24-year-old as so many witnesses say," Berlusconi said.

He also said he was now in a "stable affectionate relationship" since separating from his second wife, Veronica Lario, in 2009. Italian media reported then that she decided to leave him after press reports that he went to the birthday party of an 18-year-old girl.

Berlusconi Saturday called the teenage prostitute allegation "mud" thrown on him by political opponents who want to get rid of him.

"But this time they've surpassed any limit," Berlusconi said in a statement. "The mud will fall on those who use justice as a political weapon."

The nightclub dancer said over the weekend that she had received 7,000 euros (about $9,300) from him the first time they met, on Valentine's Day 2010, because a friend told Berlusconi she needed help.

She said she was a guest at several dinners he gave, but that she did not know him well.

She told the prime minister, among others, that she was 24 "because I didn't want people to know that I was a minor," she said in the interview broadcast on Italy's Sky TG24.

The Milan prosecutor said Berlusconi is being probed for complicity in prostitution with a minor and abuse of power.

The premier's attorneys called the investigation "absurd and groundless" and a "grave interference" in Berlusconi's private life.

Milan prosecutors started the investigation of this case in December after the premier called police and urged the teen's release from prison. She had been arrested in May on charges of theft.

Prosecutors also sent police to search the home of Nicole Minetti, a member of Berlusconi's party and a Lombardy regional council member.

Berlusconi allegedly asked Minetti to serve as Ruby's tutor so the girl would be able to leave prison.

Minetti is under investigation for allegedly favoring and aiding juvenile prostitution, prosecutors said. The teen is now 18 and is considered an adult.

The premier has always denied having any involvement with any prostitutes or helping prostitution or having wild parties at this house.

The latest investigation emerges after Italy's Constitutional Court struck down last week key parts of a law that would protect Berlusconi from prosecution.

The law was designed to halt criminal proceedings against top government officials for 18 months on the grounds that they are too busy to appear in court.

But Italy's top court ruled that judges, not politicians, should be the ones to determine if a defendant is free to appear in court.

Separate trials against Berlusconi are pending. He's accused of bribing a witness to commit perjury in one case and of tax fraud and other financial irregularities in another. Both trials began but were suspended when the immunity law was passed.

Berlusconi has called the charges politically motivated.

A third case against the prime minister, also related to tax fraud, is in preliminary stages.

Berlusconi has been tried on at least 17 charges since first taking office as prime minister in 1994, but he remains very popular with the Italian public.

'Baby Doc' Duvalier returns to Haiti in surprise move

By the CNN Wire Staff

January 17, 2011 -- Updated 0237 GMT (1037 HKT)

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• NEW: "There's definite energy in the air right now," witness says
• The former dictator's motives are not immediately clear
• Duvalier has been living in exile for about 25 years
• "Baby Doc" Duvalier led Haiti for some 15 years before a revolt forced him to flee

Port-au-Prince, Haiti (CNN) -- Jean-Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier, Haiti's former dictator, returned unexpectedly Sunday to the country after some 25 years in exile, adding uncertainty into an already turbulent situation.

He arrived in the Haitian capital as the nation is grappling with a political crisis, sparked by fraud allegations in a presidential election. It was not immediately clear why the former leader returned.

Duvalier, wearing a dark suit and tie, greeted supporters at the busy Port-au-Prince airport. He was traveling with his wife.

The Duvalier family ruled Haiti for three decades starting in 1957, when Francois "Papa Doc" Duvalier was elected president. He later declared himself president for life. When he died in 1971, he was succeeded by his 19-year-old son, Jean-Claude "Baby Doc" Duvalier.

The younger Duvalier held onto power for 15 years before a revolt forced him to flee the country. Widely accused of corruption, Duvalier has been living in France.

Upon arriving in Haiti, the former dictator and his wife went to the Karibe Hotel, according to Ryan Flaherty, head of security for Project Medishare. Duvalier's wife was swarmed by people as she approached the hotel and said that her husband had decided to return to Haiti some time ago, Flaherty reported.

"There's definite energy in the air right now," he said, as he stood with a small crowd of Duvalier supporters outside of the hotel.

"Right now, people don't know what he's back here for. People don't know if he is just visiting, or if he's here to talk about the earthquake and relief ... or is he going to make a political move," said Flaherty. "It's just going to be interesting to hear what he has to say."

Duvalier is expected to speak to reporters on Monday.

The United Nations restricted the movement of its staff in Port-au-Prince until further notice, or until the impact of the former leader's arrival becomes clear, said Patrick Hanson, a security officer for the United Nations in Haiti.

While groups of people have gathered in various parts of the city, they are calm and no violence has been reported, he said.

Last week, Haiti marked the first anniversary of a devastating earthquake that left more than 200,000 people dead.

The January 12 anniversary of the catastrophe, as Haitians call it, comes as the Caribbean nation faces new crises: a cholera epidemic that has killed more than 3,700 people and a political impasse sparked by allegations of election fraud in the nation's presidential balloting.

Haiti's Provisional Electoral Council released preliminary election results in early December that gave former first lady Mirlande Manigat a win with 31.4% of the vote. Jude Celestin, President Rene Preval's handpicked successor, came in second with 22.3% while popular musician Michel Martelly was third with 21.8%.

However, a review of the results, conducted by an Organization of American States monitoring team, said Martelly actually had won 22.2% of the vote to Celestin's 21.9%, affording Martelly a spot in a runoff election with Manigat.

A runoff, originally scheduled for Sunday, was postponed. Haiti's constitution mandates a new presidential term starting on February 7, but it is unclear whether that will happen.

Anges Pierre-Louis, a local business owner, said Haitians are anxiously waiting to see what the government will do next, now that Duvalier has returned.

"There are so many parties here and so many mixed feelings that it's really hard to know who to turn to at the moment," she said. "We don't know what the next week or the next couple of days will bring."

Journalist Jean Junior Osman contributed to this report.

New Tunisian government could be announced Monday

From Rima Maktabi, CNN

January 17, 2011 -- Updated 1303 GMT (2103 HKT)

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• A group of Swedish men say they were stopped on the streets and beaten
• Tunisia's prime minister says a deal on a unity government is coming soon
• Tunisians protested for weeks over what they said were poor living conditions and repression
ADDITIONAL SNAPSHOT LINK

Tunis, Tunisia (CNN) -- A new Tunisian government could be announced Monday, one day after the country's army clashed with armed gangs and remnants of ousted President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali's personal guard.

Ben Ali fled to Saudi Arabia on Friday after ruling the country for 23 years. His ouster followed weeks of protest over what Tunisians said were poor living conditions, high unemployment, government corruption and repression.

Public protests continued Monday, as about two thousand people packed into a major road in Tunis. As the demonstrators tried to work their way toward the headquarters of the ruling party, police opened fire with tear gas.

Opposition officials told CNN there were other peaceful demonstrations in towns in central and southern Tunisia.

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• Tunisia

The demonstrations were triggered by the suicide of an unemployed college graduate, who set himself ablaze in December after police confiscated the fruit cart that was his source of income.

Recent diplomatic cables from the U.S. Embassy in Tunisia obtained by WikiLeaks revealed growing discontent, especially over nepotism within the government.

WikiLeaks published a 2009 cable recounting a lavish dinner for the U.S. ambassador given by Ben Ali's son-in-law, a prominent businessman. The dinner featured ice cream and frozen yogurt flown in from Saint Tropez, the diplomat said.

Experts say the kinds of protests seen in Tunisia could inspire similar actions, particularly by unemployed young people, in other Arab nations.

In Cairo, Egypt Monday, a man set himself on fire in front of the parliament building, an Interior Ministry official said. The man, Abdo Abelmonem Gafr, has burns on his face but is alive and not badly hurt, said ministry spokesman Alla Mahmood. Gafr is a baker from a town 150 kilometers (93 miles) outside of Cairo, Mahmood said. Gafr's age and motives were not immediately known.

Meanwhile, a group of Swedish hunters visiting Tunisia said Monday they were stopped on the streets near Kasserine and beaten.

Some of the men's eyes were swollen and blood-filled. One man had apparently been beaten on the back, and another man had a head injury. They met with CNN Monday morning.

"To be fair, when we look back, we can understand that our guns scared them," said one of the men, Ove Oberg.

The men said by the time the army came and understood the hunters were tourists, they had been badly beaten.

"If the army didn't find us, we would have been dead," Magnus Josefsson said.

Cecilia Julin, a spokeswoman for Sweden's Foreign Ministry, said a group of 13 Swedes had been hunting wild boar. Their taxis were stopped while they were returning to their hotel in Tunis, Julin said. She said at least three Swedish nationals had been taken into police custody.

A video posted on YouTube and Facebook shows the apprehension of a man in Tunis on Sunday who says on the video that he is Swedish.

Tanks patrolled the streets of Tunis on Sunday, two days after enraged protesters caused Ben Ali to flee the country. Government troops appeared to be in control of the presidential palace in the seaside suburb of Carthage on Sunday evening, but sporadic gunfire continued around the neighborhood as night fell, said Mohamad Guiga, a nearby resident.

"It is a battle zone," Guiga told CNN by telephone from his home, about 1 kilometer (half a mile) from the palace. "From time to time, we hear some shooting," he said. The sound is very clear, he added.

On Sunday night, Prime Minister Mohamed Ghannouchi -- who has been leading the government since Friday -- said on Tunis TV that a deal to form a new government -- with members of the opposition in the cabinet -- was near.

Abdel Latif Abid, a human rights lawyer and an opposition party founder, said the new government was expected to be announced Monday, with three opposition leaders holding ministry posts.

Among those Abid said would be joining the government was Mustapha Ben Jafar, who is expected to serve as health minister. Earlier, Jafar said opposition leaders don't want to be a fig leaf for the ruling party, but want an active role in running Tunisia after more than two decades of authoritarian rule.

"The most important thing for me is to build during this period the basis for a democratic Tunisia where all the citizens participate and where we can build a civic society -- this is what I spent 40 years of my life working for," Jafar said.

Meanwhile, police made more arrests Sunday, including looters and some of the deposed president's relatives. Imed Trabelsi, the nephew of the ousted president, was detained along with 23 other relatives, Tunis TV reported.

Troops also exchanged gunfire with armed gangs near the headquarters of an opposition party, Abid said. But Guiga said most Tunisians are happy with Ben Ali's ouster and have rallied to each other's aid since the uprising.

"We are proud of those people -- simple people, young people, normal people -- who take care of each other," Guiga said.

Human rights groups and unions have said more than 50 people were killed in the protests before Ben Ali fled. At least 42 more died when a blaze swept through a prison in the eastern city of Monastir. The cause of the blaze had not been determined.

Meanwhile, Tunisians armed with sticks and knives have joined forces to guard their neighborhoods, stopping suspicious cars near their homes. Security forces did not have the manpower to guard the suburbs, they say.

And a French photojournalist died Sunday morning in Tunis, according to his uncle, who said Lucas Mebrouk Dolega "was dedicated to his career and he was always very brave."

"He was at the heart of major events happening around the world," Hamid Lhorri told CNN, though he did not elaborate on the circumstances surrounding his nephew's death.

Fouad Mebazaa, a former parliament speaker, was named acting president Saturday. He promised to restore stability and respect the Constitution of the north African country. Tunisian state TV reported that officials plan to hold presidential elections in 60 days.

Restrictions on internet use, including filters on social networking sites such as Facebook and YouTube, that were put in place under Ben Ali have been dropped, and the new government has vowed to ease restrictions on freedoms.

Family prepares slain newlywed's funeral

By Peter Taggart, For CNN

January 17, 2011 -- Updated 1057 GMT (1857 HKT)

Michaela Harte-McAreavey was married to Gaelic footballer John McAreavey less than two weeks before she was killed.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

• Michaela Harte-McAreavey was strangled while on her honeymoon in Mauritius
• Her funeral is set for Monday
• The president of Ireland and the country's top churchman are expected to attend
• Police on the Indian Ocean island have arrested 3 hotel employees

Belfast, Northern Ireland (CNN) -- Final preparations are being made for the funeral Monday of slain Irish newlywed Michaela Harte-McAreavey.

The 27-year-old was found strangled in her hotel room on the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius last Monday. She was killed less than two weeks after her wedding.

Her funeral will take place Monday afternoon at the church where she married Gaelic footballer John McAreavey on December 30.

The president of the Republic of Ireland, Mary McAleese, will head dignitaries among thousands expected to attend a requiem mass at St. Malachy's Church, Ballymacilroy, Northern Ireland.

The Catholic primate of all Ireland, Cardinal Sean Brady, will be among senior clerics at a service led by McAreavey's uncle Bishop John McAreavey, who married the couple two and a half weeks ago.

Hundreds of people attended Harte-McAreavey's wake at the Harte family home in County Tyrone over the weekend.

Gaelic football star's wife killed

Three suspects in her death are all employees of the luxury hotel where the newlywed was found strangled, according to the Mauritius Police Force.

Room attendant Avinash Treebhoowoon, 29, and Sandip Moneea, 41, a floor supervisor, have been charged with murder. Room attendant Raj Theekoy, 33, faces a conspiracy charge.

Police said one of the men has confessed and participated in the reconstruction.

Authorities believe the men were inside the teacher's hotel room when she returned alone.

"We presume they were inside and burgling the room when the lady returned and were surprised and attacked her," Mauritius police Superintendent Yoosoof Soopun, who is leading the investigation, said last week.

Authorities said the killer used an electronic key card to enter the room.

The former beauty queen's husband was in the restaurant of the hotel when his wife was killed, and is not a suspect, Soopun said.

An autopsy showed that she died of asphyxiation.

Harte-McAreavey taught Irish at St. Patrick's Academy in Dungannon, County Tyrone, in Northern Ireland. She won the Ulster Rose of Tralee contest and participated in other beauty pageants.

She was the daughter of Tyrone Gaelic football manager Mickey Harte.

Man sets himself on fire in Cairo protest

A self-immolation in Tunisia led to weeks of protests and the fall of the government

A man has set himself on fire outside the parliament building in the Egyptian capital, Cairo.

Witnesses said the man had poured fuel over his clothing before setting himself alight.

The flames were put out by a police officer and the man was taken to hospital - his condition is not known.

The action echoes that of a 26-year-old Tunisian whose self-immolation sparked a wave of protest in the country that brought down the government.

The man in Cairo has been identified as a 49-year-old restaurant owner from the city of Ismailia, east of the capital.

Reuters cited a witness as saying he had suffered burns to his hands and face.

His motives were not immediately clear but a source in the interior ministry told Reuters he was protesting about his poor living standards.

The BBC's Jon Leyne in Cairo says that following the Tunisian unrest, the incident will be ringing alarm bells in the Egyptian government.

'Mood of despair'

Mohamed Bouazizi set fire to himself in the Tunisian town of Sidi Bouzid in mid-December, after police prevented him from selling vegetables without a permit. He died in early January.

His action was followed by weeks of increasingly violent protests across Tunisia over unemployment, corruption and high food prices which resulted in the resignation of President Zine al-Abidine Ben Ali last week.

Many in Egypt have voiced the same grievances as the Tunisians.

An Egyptian Facebook group has called for street protests on 25 January, which the organisers are calling a "day of revolution against torture, poverty, corruption and unemployment".

But despite popular support for the Tunisian demonstrations, there have so far been no similar large-scale protests in Egypt, says our correspondent.

The overwhelming mood of the country is despair and not anger, he adds, as illustrated by the country's very high suicide rate.

Ehud Barak quits Israel's Labour to form new party

Labour leader Barak served as Israel's prime minister between 1999 and 2001

Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak says he is resigning as head of the Labour party to form his own faction.

Mr Barak is heading a breakaway group - Independence - which includes four other Labour MPs, reports say.

Correspondents say the move strengthens Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing coalition, as it allows Mr Barak's party to remain in government.

Labour is due to vote on whether to quit the coalition over Mr Netanyahu's handling of the Mid-East peace process.

But Mr Barak's surprise move pre-empts that decision, due next month, suggesting he still believes Mr Netanyahu is genuine about seeking peace with the Palestinians, says the BBC's Jon Donnison in Jerusalem.

The fledgling peace talks broke down late last year over Israel's refusal to renew a freeze on Jewish settlement building in the occupied West Bank.

New start

"We have presented a request to the Knesset to recognise us as a new faction that will be called Independence," Mr Barak told a press conference that was carried live on Israeli radio and television.

Analysis

Yolande Knell BBC News, Jerusalem

---

Ehud Barak resigned from Labour amid rising discontent within the left-of-centre party about its role as a partner in the right-wing coalition of PM Benjamin Netanyahu.

His backing for the government's handling of the recently failed Mid-East peace talks was the main cause of complaint from party members.

With negotiations stalled for over three months, some Labour members urged him to pull out of the coalition. Last week, one of them, Daniel Ben-Simon, quit the party in protest at the decision to stay on.

The resignation does not immediately threaten Mr Netanyahu's governing coalition - Mr Barak and his four followers are expected to remain part of it and to retain ministerial posts.

However, the move may shift the government's policies further to the right and Mr Netanyahu's majority is reduced.

"[The new party] will be centrist, Zionist and democratic," he said.

There have been tensions within the Labour party - a key member of Israel's ruling coalition - for months. A party official said four Labour parliamentarians would be joining Mr Barak's new faction.

Israeli TV and radio stations said that Agriculture Minister Shalom Simchon and deputy defence minister Matan Vilnai were among those who would join the Independence party.

Israeli army radio said Mr Netanyahu was aware of the initiative, and had pledged to allow the defence minister and the other two senior party members to continue in their ministerial posts.

The Labour movement was central to the creation of Israel in 1948 and had long dominated Israeli politics since then.

However, it placed fourth during the 2009 elections, behind the opposition Kadima party, Mr Netanyahu's Likud and the ultra-nationalist Yisrael Beitenu of Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman.

It is currently a key member of the ruling coalition, with 13 MPs prior to Monday's split. Mr Netanyahu's coalition currently has a majority, with 74 seats in the 120-seat Knesset.

Analysts say Labour's eight remaining members, political doves who are in favour of getting peace talks back on track, are likely to quit the government.

Their departures could leave Mr Netanyahu with 66 seats in the 120-seat parliament, a smaller but more stable majority.