ISRAEL: Israel would have to withdraw from some Jewish settlements under any final agreement with the Palestinians - but in the absence of a deal, a process of unilaterally disengaging Israel from the West Bank and Gaza Strip would begin "without hesitation", Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said yesterday.
Interrupted by boos from party members, a determined-sounding Mr Sharon told a convention of Israel's ruling Likud in Tel Aviv: "My disengagement plan is the best plan for (Israeli) security. This is my plan and I will get it passed."
His speech sparked a chorus of boos from members of the party's central committee, many of whom are more hardline than the Prime Minister and reject territorial concessions.
Mr Sharon reiterated with great gusto his disengagement plan, which he first outlined last month. "If after a few months it becomes clear we have no partner if they continue with the terror assault we will disengage from them politically and militarily and prevent any contact between them and us."
Such a move, he added, would also require moving some settlements. He repeated his veiled threat to Palestinians that he would be far more generous at the negotiating table than if he took unilateral measures in the absence of talks. He was "ready to give, and to give a lot", but only in a negotiated settlement.
If the Palestinians fulfilled obligations outlined in the road map peace plan, like dismantling armed groups, then, Mr Sharon said, he would agree to the creation of a Palestinian state and the removal of settlements. "It is clear that in a permanent peace accord, we will have to give up some of the Jewish settlements," he said, again eliciting a wave of catcalls from party members.
Some political pundits had predicted Mr Sharon might adopt a more cautious tone in presenting his ideas to the Likud central committee, especially after he lost a party vote in mid-2002 when members rejected his support for a Palestinian state. But the Prime Minister did not balk when his acceptance of a Palestinian state won him widespread public backing, even if it cost him some support within his party.
Mr Sharon, who built many of the settlements that pepper the West Bank and Gaza, has been making statements about his willingness to make major concessions in a bid for peace since taking office three years ago, but has so far been short on action.
The Palestinians fear that unilateral steps, which could see the Israeli leader transforming the controversial security barrier Israel is building, and which dips deep into the West Bank, into a border, would leave them with a truncated state in some 50 per cent of the West Bank.
Palestinian cabinet minister Mr Saeb Erekat said Mr Sharon was offering lip service to the idea of peace, while expanding settlements and building the security barrier. "It's business as usual on the ground," he said.
In Nablus, a 17-year-old Palestinian boy was shot dead by Israeli troops yesterday.