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Israel Warns of Civil War Risk Over Gaza
Israel's justice minister said yesterday far-right rabbis who urged soldiers to disobey orders to evacuate Jewish settlements in the Gaza Strip risked provoking civil war and could face prosecution. Tensions over Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's withdrawal plan have risen ahead of a parliamentary vote next week that could make or break his government and show whether Israel is ready to cede occupied land for the first time in more than two decades. Joining an outcry against ultranationalist rabbis fiercely opposed to the plan, Justice Minister Yosef Lapid told Reuters: "We have reached the outer limits of our patience with statements that could pose a danger to public security." Sharon has vowed to remove all 21 settlements in Gaza and four of 120 enclaves in the West Bank by the end of 2005 to "disengage" from four years of conflict with the Palestinians. His plan has splintered his ruling coalition and polarized public opinion. Several prominent far-right rabbis have called on religious soldiers to refuse orders to remove settlers from occupied land that they see as Israel's by biblical birthright.
Posted by: Fred 2004-10-22 |
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| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=46617 |