JERUSALEM: Israeli lawmaker and former minister was named leader of the opposition on Monday, a joint statement by her and the head of the Labour party said.
Once a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu‘s right-wing Likud, Livni quit the party in 2005.
The 59-year-old replaces as opposition leader former Labour chief , who resigned his seat in parliament to become head of the Jewish Agency, the quasi-governmental body that deals with Jewish immigration to Israel.
Labour is the single-largest opposition party in the , Israel‘s parliament, but its chairman Avi Gabbay is barred from serving as opposition leader as he is not a lawmaker.
Livni has comprehensive government experience, having served as foreign minister, justice minister, deputy premier and immigration minister.
After quitting Netanyahu‘s Likud, she joined the more centrist set up by .
The veteran politician headed Kadima from 2008 to 2012, before setting up a new party, centre-left Hatnua (The Movement).
Ahead of the last general elections in 2015, Hatnua allied with Labour to form the Zionist Union, winning 24 seats in the 120-seat Knesset, to become the largest opposition force.
Also in opposition to Netanyahu‘s coalition government are the left-wing Meretz party, centrist Yesh Atid, the mainly Arab Joint List alliance and independent MP Orly Levi-Abekasis.
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