JERUSALEM, 31 May 2004 — Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon tried to push forward his Gaza withdrawal plan during a tense seven-hour meeting of his divided Cabinet yesterday, threatening to fire recalcitrant ministers and reshuffle his government if he fails to obtain a majority.
The meeting ended without a vote, but with growing uncertainty over the fate of Sharon’s government. Some Cabinet ministers tried to find a compromise that would rescue the US-endorsed plan and mend ties between Sharon and his main political rival, Finance Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The plan — or a compromise — might come up for a vote at next Sunday’s Cabinet meeting, but even that is not certain, said Justice Minister Yosef Lapid. “In any case, there is not at the moment a clear picture of where the things are going,” said Lapid, head of the moderate Shinui Party.
Sharon wants to withdraw Israeli soldiers and settlers from all of the Gaza Strip and evacuate four West Bank settlements. His hard-line Likud party rejected the proposal in a May 2 referendum, enabling some ministers — who had reluctantly supported the plan — to shift sides.
In a rare interview with an Israeli TV station, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat gave conditional support to the Gaza pullout plan. “When will it come? Will it be a complete withdrawal?” he asked.
Arafat also offered to meet Sharon and talk peace. “Why not? If there is a will for peace, it will overcome all other ideas,” he said. Israel is boycotting the veteran Palestinian leader, charging that he is implicated in Palestinian violence.
