Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon fired two hardline ministers today to pave the way for his Gaza pullout plan and trigger a possible political crisis.
Mr Sharon sent dismissal notices to the two ministers of the hardline National Union Party - Mr Avigdor Lieberman and Mr Benny Elon - after they failed to answer a summons to his office. The notices are to take effect 48 hours before the crucial Cabinet session on Sunday.
Israeli Prime Minister, Mr Ariel Sharon
"According to the protocols of the law I have decided to relieve you of your post, as is my right as prime minister," the terse letters said.
"I am proud to be fired by the Prime Minister who is taking this unprecedented step of firing a minister because . . . he does not agree with him," Mr Lieberman told Israel Radio.
For Mr Sharon the decision to fire the ministers represents the final stages of his decision to break from the far right and from his legacy.
The last year has seen Mr Sharon transform from a driving force behind the settlement movement to staking his credibility on his ability to remove all the settlements from the Gaza Strip.
Mr Sharon pledged to bring his pullout plan to a Cabinet vote on Sunday, even though he has no guarantee it will pass, and even a victory could lead to the dissolution of his coalition government.
Before today, 12 Cabinet ministers opposed the plan and 11 supported it. Mr Sharon creates a one-vote majority by firing Mr Lieberman and Mr Elon. Another pro-settler faction, the National Religious Party (NRP), has threatened to quit if Mr Sharon dismissed the National Union.
NRP leader Mr Effie Eitam rejected Mr Sharon's concept of removing settlements "a terrible, immoral, bitter thing".
Throughout yesterday, Cabinet ministers tried to work out a compromise to prevent a coalition crisis, but Mr Sharon was adamant. "I intend to honour my commitment to bring the decision to the Cabinet this Sunday," he said.
AP