| Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon yesterday held a closed meeting of the parliamentary faction of the ruling Likud party to discuss a program for the withdrawal of 17 Jewish settlements from the Gaza Strip. Earlier, Sharon said in an interview with Ha'aretz: “I have ordered the development of a plan to evacuate—sorry, move—settlements that are causing us problems and places that we will not retain as part of the final settlement anyway; such as the settlements in Gaza." “We are talking about a population of 7,500 people... The first question is to get the consent of the settlers... I start from the premise that in the future there will be no Jews left in Gaza,” he added. Sharon said he would present his plan to US President George W. Bush during his visit to Washington this month. “This must be done with the consent of the Americans and with their support,” Sharon emphasized. Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said he hoped the Israeli prime minister's plan was "not just a PR ploy," adding that "the Israeli government and Sharon must choose between settlement policy and peace, they cannot have it both ways." "TIME FOR NEWS"
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