Sharon accuses far-right of inciting war

Israeli Prime Minister Mr Ariel Sharon has accused far-rightists of trying to incite civil war over his plan to withdraw from…

Israeli Prime Minister Mr Ariel Sharon has accused far-rightists of trying to incite civil war over his plan to withdraw from the occupied Gaza Strip and called for measures to curb such groups.

Settler leaders themselves warned last week that quitting Jewish settlements in the Gaza Strip and a fragment of the West Bank could spark civil war, though polls show the plan is backed by most Israelis.

Hardliners have urged security forces to disobey orders to remove settlements from land that Israel captured in the 1967 Middle East war, under the plan designed for "disengagement" from years of conflict with the Palestinians.

Mr Sharon said at today's cabinet meeting that the calls from far-rightists were: "in essence aimed at inciting civil war."

READ MORE

Mr Sharon's inner cabinet is expected to discuss a law for carrying out the withdrawal plan later this week.

Settler supporters, including many Likud leaders, oppose giving up land they see as a biblical heritage and say Mr Sharon's plan would also "reward Palestinian terror".

Pro-settler groups plan to bring tens of thousands of people to a peaceful protest against the pullout in Jerusalem later today.

But the fear of security forces is that ultra-nationalists will try to use violence to knock off course the plan, which is meant to be completed by the end of 2005.