Sharon survives no-confidence vote

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon survived three parliamentary no-confidence motions on Monday, getting a tie in one of them and beating back the other two.

Confusion erupted in the Knesset (parliament) when a first count showed a one-vote majority of 55 to 54 in favor of the no-confidence motion, but the result was overturned after one deputy said his electronic voting system had not worked.

The final count ended 55-55, short of the 61 votes the opposition needed to topple Sharon's coalition government.

According to the Knesset rules, a tied vote in a confidence motion counts as a victory for the government.

A motion tabled by the leader of the opposition Labor party's parliamentary faction, Dalia Itzhik, was defeated by a vote of 58 to 56.

Sharon has faced a series of no-confidence motions in recent weeks after losing his parliamentary majority, but has survived all of them.

Source: Xinhua