JERUSALEM: Defence Minister Ehud Barak, a main architect of Israel's policy toward Iran's nuclear programme, said in a surprise announcement on Monday that he was quitting politics and would not run in the January 22 national election.
"I have decided to retire from political life and not to run for the next Knesset ... I will end my term as defence minister once the next government is established, in about three months," he told a news conference.
Opinion polls had predicted a poor showing for the small party that Barak currently leads, Atzmaut. (Reuters)
