Sharon delays Gaza cabinet vote

Sharon's political future is being linked to the fate of the plan

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has postponed a cabinet vote on withdrawal from Jewish settlements in the Gaza Strip in the face of strong opposition.

Reports say an eight-hour meeting of ministers on Sunday to discuss a revised plan saw heated exchanges.

Mr Sharon's original proposal called for a unilateral withdrawal from Gaza and four settlements in the West Bank.

It won the backing of the US and a majority of Israeli public opinion, but his Likud Party rejected it.

In an attempt to win over ministers, Mr Sharon has revised his original plan and given it a new name - the gradual disengagement plan.

In scope, this plan is almost identical to the original proposal, but the key difference is that it calls for a withdrawal in four stages, as opposed to all at once.

Mr Sharon is said to be determined to get the new plan approved, even if that means dismissing some ministers.

However, he has made it clear that he will not hold a cabinet vote until he has a majority.

The BBC's Barbara Plett in Jerusalem says that could delay a decision until next week.

She adds that strong opposition from ministers has presented Mr Sharon with his biggest political crisis since becoming prime minister: if he sticks with his policy, he is in danger of losing his government; if he concedes defeat he will have a government, but no policy.

Two right-wing parties in Mr Sharon's coalition have threatened to withdraw their support should a single settlement be evacuated, leaving the government without a majority in parliament.

Palestinian critics

The prime minister was believed to have had the guaranteed support of only 11 of the 23 ministers for the revised plan before the latest weekly cabinet meeting.

Mr Sharon's main political rival in the Likud Party, Benjamin Netanyahu, is seen as having played a crucial part in Mr Sharon's failure to win majority support for even a slimmed-down version of his Gaza plan.

There are many who will oppose any plan that involves any form of Israeli withdrawal.

Israeli critics say leaving Gaza unconditionally would reward the actions of Palestinian suicide bombers.

It has been criticised by Palestinians, too, because it denies refugees the right to return to their homes in Israel.

Arab critics also say that the plan allows Israel to retain large settlement blocks in the West Bank.