Official results indicated early Monday that Israel's ruling Likud Party overwhelmingly rejected Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's plan to withdraw from the Gaza Strip and four West Bank settlements. 60 percent of voters were against the plan and 39 percent were in favor.
In an initial response to his defeat, Sharon said that while he and the Israeli public were disappointed with the results, he would respect them.
"I know that much of the Israeli public supports my plan. I know that they feel, as I do, disappointment with the results of the referendum. We have difficult days before us where difficult decisions need to be made," Sharon said in a statement.
Sharon said he would not resign, but would consult the Likud ministers, the Knessest (parliament) faction and his coalition partners to decide what steps to take.
Meanwhile, an Israeli airstrike killed four Palestinian activists, including two leaders of Fatah's al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, in the West Bank city of Nablus late on Sunday, Palestinian security sources said.
The four were killed when a missile his their car, Palestinian security sources said. Two of the dead were identified as Nader Abu Leil and Hashem Abu Hamdan, leaders of the Al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades in the Balata refugee camp near Nablus. The two others killed in the explosion were also Al Aqsa Martyrs' members.
(Albawaba.com)
© 2004 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
