Lebanon report prompts calls for Olmert's resignation

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert faced calls for his resignation in the wake of harsh findings of an official inquiry into the shortcomings of his leadership during last summer’s costly, but inconclusive, war in Lebanon.

The commission’s first report was to be released later today, but government officials confirmed an earlier TV report that the findings would be strongly critical of Mr Olmert and his defence minister, Amir Peretz. That was enough to trigger calls for Mr Olmert’s resignation from coalition partners as well as opponents.