"If they quit, the red carpet will be laid out for Labor to enter. In addition, Arafat is about to depart this word, in good time, and therefore we must give the situation a renewed chance. This could be our only remaining chance to stop the disengagement."
It is still not clear what Netanyahu's plans are. He issued an ultimatum similar to that of the NRP, saying that he would resign the government if a referendum on the withdrawal/expulsion plan was not held. There is talk that the fact that the Likud is considering a referendum, despite Sharon's personal opposition, will provide Netanyahu with a "ladder" with which to climb down from his threat.
In light of her call for Netanyahu and the NRP not to quit, Arutz-7's Haggai Segal asked MK Gamliel if she had toned down her opposition to the unilateral Gaza-Shomron pullout plan. "Not at all," she said. "But once the Knesset decided on the disengagement, this matter is out of our hands, and now I feel that my job is to make sure that all the problematic clauses are taken out of the Disengagement Implementation Bill. These include the clause calling for three years' imprisonment for congregating to resist the evacuation, and other very grave clauses."
The bill passed its first Knesset reading last week, and must now be reviewed and prepared for its final readings in the appropriate committee. The Knesset Interior Committee decided today that the bill will be divided up and reviewed in two different committees: the Law Committee will deal with the punitive measures and the like, while the Finance Committee will take care of monetary matters. "We will try," MK Gamliel said, "to reach understanding with the other factions to remove or adjust the very harmful clauses of the bill." She avoided answering whether she would then vote for the bill, but added, "This has nothing to do with our objections to the expulsion/withdrawal, which we continue to totally oppose."
The Knesset Interior Committee, in deciding which committees would review the bill, pointedly ignored a request by the government. The government had asked that the committees complete their deliberations by the end of 2004, but the Knesset Interior Committee did not include this stipulation in its decision today.
It is still not clear what Netanyahu's plans are. He issued an ultimatum similar to that of the NRP, saying that he would resign the government if a referendum on the withdrawal/expulsion plan was not held. There is talk that the fact that the Likud is considering a referendum, despite Sharon's personal opposition, will provide Netanyahu with a "ladder" with which to climb down from his threat.
In light of her call for Netanyahu and the NRP not to quit, Arutz-7's Haggai Segal asked MK Gamliel if she had toned down her opposition to the unilateral Gaza-Shomron pullout plan. "Not at all," she said. "But once the Knesset decided on the disengagement, this matter is out of our hands, and now I feel that my job is to make sure that all the problematic clauses are taken out of the Disengagement Implementation Bill. These include the clause calling for three years' imprisonment for congregating to resist the evacuation, and other very grave clauses."
The bill passed its first Knesset reading last week, and must now be reviewed and prepared for its final readings in the appropriate committee. The Knesset Interior Committee decided today that the bill will be divided up and reviewed in two different committees: the Law Committee will deal with the punitive measures and the like, while the Finance Committee will take care of monetary matters. "We will try," MK Gamliel said, "to reach understanding with the other factions to remove or adjust the very harmful clauses of the bill." She avoided answering whether she would then vote for the bill, but added, "This has nothing to do with our objections to the expulsion/withdrawal, which we continue to totally oppose."
The Knesset Interior Committee, in deciding which committees would review the bill, pointedly ignored a request by the government. The government had asked that the committees complete their deliberations by the end of 2004, but the Knesset Interior Committee did not include this stipulation in its decision today.