Lieberman sworn in as Israel FM

Right-wing firebrand Avigdor Lieberman took his oath of office in front of the Israeli parliament on Monday, returning as foreign minister after he quit to fight corruption charges. The 120-member house confirmed his reappointment by a vote of 62 to 17, almost a year after he resigned to fight the corruption charges which he was cleared of last week. Lieberman heads the ultra-nationalist Yisrael Beitenu (Israel is Our Home) party, which entered into a formal alliance with Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud in October 2012. Earlier on Monday, Netanyahu told a meeting of ministers and MPs from the alliance that he looked forward to Lieberman's return to government. "In a few hours we shall be able to welcome (him) back to the cabinet table," he said in remarks broadcast on public radio. "I missed him." "We have a lot to work on; great tests and great challenges," Netanyahu added. "Welcome back." Critics have long accused Lieberman of racism, especially after he said much of Israel's Arab-populated areas should be joined to a Palestinian state in exchange for Israel keeping its West Bank settlements. He has also shown open disdain for western-backed Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas, calling him a "diplomatic terrorist" and an obstacle to peace. Lawmaker Zehava Gal-On of the left-wing opposition Meretz party, said that reinstating the burly former nightclub bouncer could further complicate already faltering U.S.-brokered peace talks with the Palestinians. "It's like putting a bomb in the peace process,' she told the parliament.