Israel Beiteinu denies demanding that Freidmann be kept justice minister

Israel Beiteinu on Friday denied demanding that Justice Minister Daniel Freidmann be kept in his post as a condition for joining a Likud-led coalition. "It was not Israel Beiteinu that turned the Daniel Freidmann issue into something personal and formal, but it was actually MK Shelly Yacimovich (Labor) who is ruling out Freidmann on behalf of someone else who is interested in the portfolio," claimed chief Israel Beiteinu negotiator MK Stas Meseznikov to Army Radio. "[In any case,] any name that [Israel Beiteinu head Avigdor] Lieberman would have put forward would have been viewed as being done so for shady reasons due to Lieberman's image. Yvette simply draws fire."