MIDDLE EAST: It was a rare festive moment for Ariel Sharon. Surrounded by well-wishers, the embattled Israeli prime minister, who has faced months of invective inside his own party and on the far-right over his plan to withdraw from Gaza, smiled and warmly shook hands with lawmakers., writes Peter Hirschberg in Jerusalem
Moments earlier, parliament had resoundingly backed his plan to evacuate all 21 settlements in Gaza and four in the West Bank.
The accolades flowed yesterday from media commentators. One newspaper lauded Mr Sharon for his bold plan, saying he had been transformed from a "tactician" into a "strategist."
One columnist marvelled at his steely nerve. Another described him as a "born leader".
But the festivities and any enjoyment the prime minister will have derived from leafing through the pages of yesterday's newspapers, will be shortlived.
His party is bitterly divided over his plan - almost half of the Likud lawmakers voted against a Gaza pullout in Tuesday's vote. Four of his top ministers, including his main rival in the party, Finance Minister Mr Benjamin Netanyahu, have given him 14 days to agree to a national referendum on his plan.
If he refuses, they have threatened to quit - a move that would almost certainly split the ruling Likud. The far-right National Religious Party has also given Mr Sharon 14 days to agree to a referendum, otherwise it will bolt what is already a minority coalition.
The cliched phrase, that "14 days is an eternity in Israeli politics", was on the lips of more than one political observer yesterday. Creative solutions, they suggested, could always be found to unlock the ultimatums.
But Mr Sharon's aides insisted yesterday he remained steadfast in his opposition to a referendum. The prime minister views the call for a nationwide poll on his plan as a delaying tactic by his opponents who wish to put off implementation of a Gaza withdrawal for as long as possible. Just passing the legislation required to hold a referendum could take months.
Opinion polls regularly show a massive majority of the Israeli public in favour of leaving Gaza. One survey published just before Tuesday's vote in parliament showed a 65-28 split in favour. But the prime minister fears that a referendum will be much closer and that he could even lose.
"If Sharon agrees to a referendum, his chances of winning are not great," wrote veteran political commentator Nahum Barnea in the daily Yediot Ahronoth. "A referendum that is born out of pressure, brings to the polls mainly those who are in opposition." That's not to say Mr Sharon won't ultimately relent and that Israelis will not be subjected to a referendum. Faced with the possibility of early elections - if he fails to pass the budget in the coming months, for instance, he will be forced to go to the people - the prime minister might prefer his chances in a referendum.
With many of his senior ministers and half his party in open rebellion over his Gaza plan, however, Mr Sharon's main preference is to shore up his minority coalition by bringing in the opposition Labour Party, whose members all voted in favour of his plan. Members of the centre-left party, which strongly backs an Israeli pullout not only from Gaza but also from the West Bank, were yesterday even considering backing the budget in a preliminary vote next week if opponents of the prime minister try to use it to topple him.
But there is also strong opposition inside the Likud to bringing Labour into the government.
Faced with a growing mutiny inside his own party and a crumbling coalition, Mr Sharon might ultimately be forced to go to an early election. If he does, he could also face a leadership challenge inside the Likud from Mr Netanyahu, who is very popular in the party.
Early elections could precipitate what political observers like to call the "Big Bang" - a major realignment of political forces inside Israel. This has already begun, though: Mr Sharon, the one-time architect of the settlements who now plans to begin tearing them down, has made the traditional lines between left and right in Israel distinctly fuzzy. The result could be a broad-based centrist party that includes moderate Likud members and Labour lawmakers, possibly headed by Mr Sharon and Labour leader Mr Shimon Peres.
Mr Sharon will clearly still be savouring his impressive victory in parliament. But he will have to navigate a political minefield if he is ever to reach the point where his plan is actually implemented.