Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said he was determined to carry out his plan to "disengage" from the Palestinians despite a corruption probe and threats by his coalition partners to quit the government.
On Monday, Sharon said he would put his proposal to withdraw from all or most of the Gaza Strip and part of the West Bank to a Cabinet vote next month, after he returns from talks in Washington.
And if his current center-right government doesn't approve the disengagement plan, Sharon said, he will set up a new, moderate government instead.
The tough talk came a day after Israel's state attorney recommended indicting Sharon for accepting bribes, a move that could force his resignation.
Sharon told a closed meeting of parliament's Defense and Foreign Affairs Committee on Monday that he plans to seek Cabinet and parliamentary approval for the plan after returning from a US trip next month, spokesman Assaf Shariv said. Sharon is scheduled to meet US President George W. Bush on April 14.
During the meeting, Sharon also warned hardline critics that he could form a new coalition -- apparently with the dovish Labor Party -- if his plan is rejected, participants said. Two of Sharon's three coalition partners are hardline pro-settlement parties opposed to giving up control of any territory.
"If the parties leave the coalition, on the same day I will form a new government," Shariv quoted Sharon as saying.
The Maariv daily yesterday reported that Sharon and Labor had already drawn up an agreement to form a new government after Sharon's return from Washington, but that the agreement had been put on hold on the state attorney's recommendation.
However, Labor lawmaker Yitzhak Herzog told Israel Radio that the reported agreement -- which even included a division of Cabinet posts -- was a "smoke screen," apparently designed to ease pressure on Sharon.
Later yesterday, Sharon was to address a convention of his Likud Party. Although party activists have voiced harsh opposition to territorial concessions, it appeared Sharon's legal troubles would rally the party around him in a show of unity.
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