ISRAEL Sharon defends withdrawal

The prime minister said his Likud Party would hold a vote on the plan.
TEL AVIV, Israel (AP) -- Prime Minister Ariel Sharon presented a sweeping defense of his plan to remove Israeli troops and settlers from the Gaza Strip and parts of the West Bank, saying he has to fend off increasing international pressure, protect Israel and prevent a Palestinian humanitarian disaster.
Sharon announced earlier this week that he would hold a binding referendum among 200,000 Likud members on the withdrawal plan. The party is divided over the withdrawal plan, with several senior Likud figures opposing it. Initial polls suggest a pullback would win narrow approval.
"Remaining in the current situation is dangerous for Israel," Sharon told a high-tech conference Wednesday night in what was seen as the start of his campaign to win support for the plan among members of his hawkish Likud Party.
In his speech, Sharon warned that the status quo is untenable. "The world will not allow a deadlock to continue. A deadlock will bring sooner or later proposals that are dangerous for Israel," he said.
International negotiations
Details of his "disengagement plan" are still being worked out in discussions with the United States. The government has discussed removing troops and settlers from most or all of Gaza and some areas of the West Bank if peace talks remain frozen.
Sharon said Israel must draw its own security line, which would mean "withdrawal from areas that it is clear will not be under Israeli control in any permanent agreement to be signed in the future, which cause great friction between Israelis and Palestinians -- the Gaza Strip, for example."
A team of U.S. envoys was making its third visit to the region since February to discuss details of Sharon's plan. Sharon is to meet President Bush in Washington on April 14 to discuss it further.
The U.S. envoys were to meet Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia in the West Bank town of Jericho today, Palestinian officials said. Qureia has said he welcomes an Israeli withdrawal from any territory, but only as a first step to a full withdrawal from Gaza and the West Bank.
What changed stance
In his speech Wednesday, Sharon, a hard-liner who was one of the main champions of settlement, gave some insight into what made him change his mind.
Sharon said he had high hopes for the U.S.-backed "road map" peace plan when it was unveiled last year, but soon felt the Palestinians were not serious about the plan, particularly a requirement that they crack down on militants. For its part, Israel did not meet its requirement to dismantle dozens of settlement outposts.
"As soon as we saw that there is not a Palestinian partner, we moved on to a totally different situation; there's no possibility of reaching an agreement, and Israel must act alone," he said.
Sharon said he proposed his "disengagement plan" because the other options -- to annex the West Bank and Gaza, to completely pull out of the areas or to do nothing -- would be disastrous for Israel.
Annexing the territory would force Israel to kick out the Palestinian Authority and take responsibility for the daily lives of Palestinians, he said. A complete withdrawal would be a "security disaster," he said.
Maintaining the status quo would be dangerous as well, because international donors, who provide the majority of funding for the Palestinian Authority, are reluctant to keep giving money amid the continuing violence and Israeli travel restrictions that damage the Palestinian economy, he said.