Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has met settler leaders for the first time in months to try to persuade them to leave the Gaza Strip peacefully.
Settlers from Gush Katif said they were not admitting defeat, but wanted to discuss compensation if they were forced to leave by the Israeli army.
"The discussion is very tense," said an ultranationalist MP acting as mediator.
In March, Israel's parliament approved the budget, removing the last formal obstacle to the Gaza withdrawal plan.
Mr Sharon met Gush Katif representatives at his Jerusalem office to discuss the relocation of their entire community to Israel.
"Settler representatives expressed their sadness," said National Religious Party MP and mediator Zevulun Orlev.
"They still don't know exactly what the future holds, and Sharon listened to their grievances," Mr Orlev said.
"As far as we are concerned [the battle] is not lost, but we want to make certain that we have insurance, because we know there's a chance we'll lose this struggle," said one settler at the meeting, Aharon Hazut.
Security and consolidation
About 8,000 settlers and the soldiers that protect them are due to be withdrawn from Gaza.
Israel will continue to control Gaza's external borders, coastline and airspace. Israeli will also evacuate four West Bank settlements.
Mr Sharon has consistently argued that the removal of the Gaza settlement and four West Bank settlements will improve Israeli security and help to consolidate control over the West Bank.
Settlers have sought to encourage resistance to withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and have called on Israeli soldiers to refuse orders to evict them.
Palestinians fear that the withdrawal from the Gaza Strip - an impoverished, overcrowded area with relatively few Israeli settlers - will lead to Israel gaining more control over the West Bank and Jerusalem.
The international community considers all settlements in Gaza and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, as illegal under international law, though Israel disputes this.
Resettlement
Vice-Premier Shimon Peres told Israeli radio he was going to Washington to seek US financial aid for Israel's withdrawal from the Gaza Strip.
He expects to meet Vice-President Dick Cheney and other administration officials.
Mr Peres refused to say how much aid Israel was seeking.
He said the funds would be used to develop the Galil region and Negev Desert, areas in which Israel plans to resettle settlers from Gaza.
Reports say Israel has budgeted about $1bn for the pullout.
On Monday, Mr Sharon pledged to go ahead with the expansion of a Jewish settlement near Jerusalem, despite Palestinian and US opposition.
He said 3,500 homes would be built to form a corridor between Jerusalem and the largest West Bank settlement of Maale Adumim.
President George W Bush and Mr Sharon are due to discuss settlement activity when they meet in Texas next week for talks due to focus on the Israeli pullout from the Gaza Strip.
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