Ariel Sharon, once considered by Palestinians to be the most vile of the vile, has apparently decided to remove the Gaza settlements, in a move that stunned Likud party members.
Ariel Sharon, once considered by Palestinians to be the most vile of the vile, has apparently decided to remove the Gaza settlements, in a move that stunned Likud party members.
He called them a security hazard and said he could envision a time when there were no Jews in Gaza.
This is a stunning turnaround for the man who was probably once the most hated Jew in all the world by most Palestinians, which is saying quite a lot. What form or timetable the removal of the settements will take has yet to be discussed.
Whether Sharon will actually survive long enough to see his plan through to its fruition is another question mark. He narrowly survived a no confidence vote only because several party members walked out in disgust after the announcement was made.
Sharon apparently plans to present a formal version of the plan in a meeting with the Palestinian PM, then with Pres. GW Bush.
Comments (7 of 7)
Jump To Comment: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7Thank you Caoinhe. You and the International Solidarity Movement have once again saved the day.
Thank you Thank you.
First southern Lebanon (check),
Then Gaza (in progress),
Then the West Bank (*ALL* of it),
Then the Golan,
Then compensation for stolen land,
Then peace.
What should happen to Jerusalem?
...propose a workable solution for Jerusalem.
- Arab neighbourhoods go to palestine (in return for compensatory land from israel).
- Jewish neighbourhoods go to Israel.
- Disputed religious sites are placed under international control.
The path to peace is easy and obvious. It only requires leaders who are not willing to exchange their children's entrails for land....
they are seeing reason. No wonder, with their economy in ruins, near mutiny within the military, and the obvious failure of their security-first strategy. Even Sharon couldn't ignore the facts indefinitely. Let's hope he lasts long enough in office to see the plan through to completion.
So Kokomero is now supporting the Sharon government? What's next? Will Avi vote for Labor? Will Arafat shave? The world makes no sense anymore....
Personally I doubt that Sharon is sincere, although I hope that I am wrong. It would certainly be far easier for him to end the occupation than it would be for a labor Prime Minister. In the words of Leonard Nimoy "Only Nixon can go to China"...
I am equally sceptical about Sharon's real intentions but if it does happen it is certainly a step in the right direction. Let's wait and see if the words get translated into action. I wonder how much arm twisting by the US was required to provoke this "change of heart" by Sharon? Perhaps it is payback time for "WMD evidence" provided by Israeli intelligence??
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