Yesterday's remarks by Knesset Speaker Ruby Rivlin, a political ally and friend of the Prime Minister, continue to make waves. Speaking on Army Radio, Rivlin lashed out at Sharon's policies vis-a-vis Abu Mazen and the United States:
"This is not the first time that I am filled with concern at the way things are going. Sharon's chief advisor Dov Weisglass is much too complacent regarding the way things are developing, and they are making intolerably light of the events and the processes. Israel is becoming irrelevant in the American considerations. This approach will lead us to an inevitable crash..."
"If the Likud forces me to support the establishment of a Palestinian state or a significant evacuation of communities in Yesha," Rivlin said, "I will resign from my position. I will not be able to support a decision that is against my deepest belief."
He likened Sharon to an out-of-control driver: "We're driving a heavy car, and are able to control the brakes when going at [slow speeds] - but at [fast speeds], even an excellent driver like Sharon will lose control of the car."
Specifically, Rivlin is opposed to Sharon's policy of making gestures such as releasing prisoners and removing checkpoints in order to bolster Abu Mazen's standing in the PA - "especially in light of the fact that the Palestinians continue to manufacture Kassam rockets and the intifada continues as usual." The Speaker said that the Israeli government was mistaken in the way it accepted Bush's vision and the Road Map, treating them as a practical step-by-step document instead of something more general, and that Israel will pay a price for this.
Aides of Sharon were taken quite aback at Rivlin's statements - and then had to face more of the same from another direction. Coalition chairman MK Gideon Saar of the Likud said today, "Sharon's policy is causing a split within the Likud," he said. Saar then expressed his wish, or his conviction, that Sharon would not try to enforce coalition discipline in votes on political matters of controversy.
"This is not the first time that I am filled with concern at the way things are going. Sharon's chief advisor Dov Weisglass is much too complacent regarding the way things are developing, and they are making intolerably light of the events and the processes. Israel is becoming irrelevant in the American considerations. This approach will lead us to an inevitable crash..."
"If the Likud forces me to support the establishment of a Palestinian state or a significant evacuation of communities in Yesha," Rivlin said, "I will resign from my position. I will not be able to support a decision that is against my deepest belief."
He likened Sharon to an out-of-control driver: "We're driving a heavy car, and are able to control the brakes when going at [slow speeds] - but at [fast speeds], even an excellent driver like Sharon will lose control of the car."
Specifically, Rivlin is opposed to Sharon's policy of making gestures such as releasing prisoners and removing checkpoints in order to bolster Abu Mazen's standing in the PA - "especially in light of the fact that the Palestinians continue to manufacture Kassam rockets and the intifada continues as usual." The Speaker said that the Israeli government was mistaken in the way it accepted Bush's vision and the Road Map, treating them as a practical step-by-step document instead of something more general, and that Israel will pay a price for this.
Aides of Sharon were taken quite aback at Rivlin's statements - and then had to face more of the same from another direction. Coalition chairman MK Gideon Saar of the Likud said today, "Sharon's policy is causing a split within the Likud," he said. Saar then expressed his wish, or his conviction, that Sharon would not try to enforce coalition discipline in votes on political matters of controversy.