Prime Minister Sharon's chances of having his expulsion/evacuation plan approved by the Likud have improved significantly. Polls at the end of last week showed a 54% majority among the Likud membership in favor of the plan - and this number is assumed to be growing in light of two weekend developments: The killing of Rantisi, and increased ministerial support in the Likud for the expulsion plan.
Despite the momentum gained by Sharon in his bid to have the plan approved by the Likud, grassroots Yesha supporters are confident that their efforts will bear fruit, and that the Likud rank-and-file will reject the expulsion. Likud Ministers Sharansky, HaNegbi, Landau, and Katz are strongly against the plan, and even former Minister Benny Begin is expected to break his long silence and declare his strong opposition to the plan in the coming days.
Among the top 20 Likud MKs, at least 11 are against, with 7 in favor.
Education Minister Limor Livnat said this morning that with a heavy heart, she had decided to support Sharon's program:
"I don't like this plan, it's not a good plan, but with a broken heart I have concluded that the nation wants to see a chance for a change. We have to make the decision keeping the big picture in mind. Much of the nation wants to see a light at the end of the tunnel. I don't know if this plan will actually bring that desired light, but we have to give it a chance, especially given the fact that the Prime Minister is behind it. We have to strengthen him in his desire to strengthen the settlement blocs - an issue that will certainly arise in negotiations at some future stage. Sharon also said three important things at the Cabinet meeting today: the anti-terror fence will be built along the original route, meaning it will enclose the large settlement blocs; it will be completed before the evacuation; and that the settlement blocs will remain in our hands, with American consent. I also heard from [Sharon's aide] Dov Weisglass that construction will continue in the settlement blocs. We have to keep in mind that it's reversible at any stage. It's a very hard decision for me."
Finance Minister Netanyahu said last month that he would support the plan only on three conditions:
* The Americans must issue public declarations against the so-called 'right of return' for Arabs who left Israel in 1948.
* Israel must control all entrances and exits to the Gaza Strip, including the Philadelphi route separating Egypt and Gaza.
* The Americans must also agree that the counter-terrorism partition fence include settlement blocs in Judea and Samaria, and that the entire fence be completed before the retreat begins.
Netanyahu believes that the first two conditions were met in U.S. President George Bush's letter to Prime Minister Sharon last week, and the third condition was met this morning - at least verbally. This occurred at today's Cabinet meeting when Sharon announced that the counter-terrorism fence would in fact be completed before the evacuation begins. The expulsion plan is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2005.
Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom, who has expressed light opposition to the plan over the past several months, may also announce his jump on the pro-expulsion bandwagon in the near future. This, despite the fact that the likely entry of Labor into the coalition is almost certain to cost Shalom his job - which is coveted by Labor Party leader MK Shimon Peres.
Peres in fact released a statement today supporting the killing of Rantisi - event though just over three weeks ago, Peres sharply criticized the government for killing Sheikh Yassin. Former Justice Minister Yossi Beilin, Peres' protege and currently head of the extreme-left Yachad party, bitingly noted the contradiction and said that now that Peres is close to joining the government, he is suddenly in favor of that which he opposed less than a month ago. Peres called Beilin's words "primitive," but did not explain why he changed his mind.
Labor MK Binyamin Ben-Eliezer, as well, who served as Defense Minister in the previous national unity government, said, "It was inevitable. He received warning a year ago. He was the #1 leader in planning terrorism, the live spirit for decades and the main pusher for terrorism against us. The war against terror continues with no compromises."
Labor MK Ephraim Sneh said that terrorism would never end without diplomatic negotiations, "from which Sharon is running away." One of Sharon's uncompromising tenets is that negotiations cannot take place while terrorism rages.
Likud coalition whip MK Gideon Saar, who served as Cabinet Secretary under both Prime Ministers Sharon and Netanyahu, announced his opposition to Sharon's disengagement plan last night. "Despite the achievements made by the Prime Minister in his visit to Washington," Saar said, "the complete and broad context of the program includes [much more than that.] It includes a commitment to the Road Map, and restrictions on construction and on the entire settlement enterprise in Judea and Samaria."
Despite the momentum gained by Sharon in his bid to have the plan approved by the Likud, grassroots Yesha supporters are confident that their efforts will bear fruit, and that the Likud rank-and-file will reject the expulsion. Likud Ministers Sharansky, HaNegbi, Landau, and Katz are strongly against the plan, and even former Minister Benny Begin is expected to break his long silence and declare his strong opposition to the plan in the coming days.
Among the top 20 Likud MKs, at least 11 are against, with 7 in favor.
Education Minister Limor Livnat said this morning that with a heavy heart, she had decided to support Sharon's program:
"I don't like this plan, it's not a good plan, but with a broken heart I have concluded that the nation wants to see a chance for a change. We have to make the decision keeping the big picture in mind. Much of the nation wants to see a light at the end of the tunnel. I don't know if this plan will actually bring that desired light, but we have to give it a chance, especially given the fact that the Prime Minister is behind it. We have to strengthen him in his desire to strengthen the settlement blocs - an issue that will certainly arise in negotiations at some future stage. Sharon also said three important things at the Cabinet meeting today: the anti-terror fence will be built along the original route, meaning it will enclose the large settlement blocs; it will be completed before the evacuation; and that the settlement blocs will remain in our hands, with American consent. I also heard from [Sharon's aide] Dov Weisglass that construction will continue in the settlement blocs. We have to keep in mind that it's reversible at any stage. It's a very hard decision for me."
Finance Minister Netanyahu said last month that he would support the plan only on three conditions:
* The Americans must issue public declarations against the so-called 'right of return' for Arabs who left Israel in 1948.
* Israel must control all entrances and exits to the Gaza Strip, including the Philadelphi route separating Egypt and Gaza.
* The Americans must also agree that the counter-terrorism partition fence include settlement blocs in Judea and Samaria, and that the entire fence be completed before the retreat begins.
Netanyahu believes that the first two conditions were met in U.S. President George Bush's letter to Prime Minister Sharon last week, and the third condition was met this morning - at least verbally. This occurred at today's Cabinet meeting when Sharon announced that the counter-terrorism fence would in fact be completed before the evacuation begins. The expulsion plan is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2005.
Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom, who has expressed light opposition to the plan over the past several months, may also announce his jump on the pro-expulsion bandwagon in the near future. This, despite the fact that the likely entry of Labor into the coalition is almost certain to cost Shalom his job - which is coveted by Labor Party leader MK Shimon Peres.
Peres in fact released a statement today supporting the killing of Rantisi - event though just over three weeks ago, Peres sharply criticized the government for killing Sheikh Yassin. Former Justice Minister Yossi Beilin, Peres' protege and currently head of the extreme-left Yachad party, bitingly noted the contradiction and said that now that Peres is close to joining the government, he is suddenly in favor of that which he opposed less than a month ago. Peres called Beilin's words "primitive," but did not explain why he changed his mind.
Labor MK Binyamin Ben-Eliezer, as well, who served as Defense Minister in the previous national unity government, said, "It was inevitable. He received warning a year ago. He was the #1 leader in planning terrorism, the live spirit for decades and the main pusher for terrorism against us. The war against terror continues with no compromises."
Labor MK Ephraim Sneh said that terrorism would never end without diplomatic negotiations, "from which Sharon is running away." One of Sharon's uncompromising tenets is that negotiations cannot take place while terrorism rages.
Likud coalition whip MK Gideon Saar, who served as Cabinet Secretary under both Prime Ministers Sharon and Netanyahu, announced his opposition to Sharon's disengagement plan last night. "Despite the achievements made by the Prime Minister in his visit to Washington," Saar said, "the complete and broad context of the program includes [much more than that.] It includes a commitment to the Road Map, and restrictions on construction and on the entire settlement enterprise in Judea and Samaria."