Palestinian President Yasser Arafat and Lebanese guerrilla chief Hassan Nasrallah could become targets for assassination, Israel's prime minister said in interviews published yesterday, in his most explicit threats yet against his arch foes.
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon was also quoted as saying he would withdraw from all of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank settlements of Ganim, Kadim, Homesh and Sanur, for the first time revealing the scope of his unilateral "disengagement" plan. He also hinted at a timetable, saying he hoped by this time next year Israel would be withdrawing.
Sharon also commented on the bribe-taking suspicions against him, saying: "My hands are clean." Israel's chief prosecutor has recommended he be indicted, but the final decision is up to the attorney general who is expected to rule by the end of May.
The prime minister has said he would let his divided Likud Party make a final decision on the withdrawal plan. Sharon is to hold a binding referendum among 200,000 party members after his return from an April 14 meeting with US President George W. Bush. Recent polls suggested that while Sharon has an advantage, the gap is too small to assure approval of the Gaza plan.
Sharon's interviews with the Maariv, Yediot Ahronot and Haaretz dailies, given ahead of next week's Passover holiday, were seen as the opening of his campaign for the withdrawal plan.
Maariv quoted him as saying Israel would withdraw from all of Gaza, only retaining control over a patrol road between southern Gaza and the Egyptian border, to prevent weapons smuggling.
Sharon initially considered retaining three settlements in northern Gaza. There had also been debate over how many West Bank settlements to evacuate, and it appears Sharon settled for the smallest proposed number of four.
"We need to get out of Gaza, not to be responsible any more for what happens there," Sharon told Maariv. "I hope that by next Passover we will be in the midst of disengagement, because disengagement is good for Israel."
The prime minister told Yediot that after the withdrawal Israel would consider cutting off water and electricity to Gaza if attacks against Israelis continue.
Asked by Haaretz whether Arafat and Nasrallah are targets for assassination, Sharon said: "I wouldn't suggest that either of them feel immune ... Anyone who kills a Jew or harms an Israeli citizen, or sends people to kill Jews, is a marked man. Period."
Sharon told Maariv that Arafat "has no insurance policy." Sharon added that "today, everyone knows Arafat is the obstacle [blocking] any progress."
Palestinian officials said they are taking Sharon's threats seriously. "With these threats, Sharon is threatening the future of the peace process in the region," said Arafat aide Nabil Abu Rdeneh.
Sharon's warnings were reinforced by his vice premier and confidant, Ehud Olmert.
"Those involved in killing Jews will have to defend themselves, run away, hide and invest all their energy in defending themselves, that is what the prime minister said," Olmert told Israel Radio.
Israel's army chief, Lieutenant General Moshe Yaalon, made veiled threats against Arafat and Nasrallah last week, after Israel assassinated Hamas founder Sheik Ahmed Yassin. However, security officials said at the time there were no plans to target the two.
Four people jailed in the landmark Hong Kong national security trial of "47 democrats" accused of conspiracy to commit subversion were freed today after more than four years behind bars, the second group to be released in a month. Among those freed was long-time political and LGBTQ activist Jimmy Sham (岑子杰), who also led one of Hong Kong’s largest pro-democracy groups, the Civil Human Rights Front, which disbanded in 2021. "Let me spend some time with my family," Sham said after arriving at his home in the Kowloon district of Jordan. "I don’t know how to plan ahead because, to me, it feels
Poland is set to hold a presidential runoff election today between two candidates offering starkly different visions for the country’s future. The winner would succeed Polish President Andrzej Duda, a conservative who is finishing his second and final term. The outcome would determine whether Poland embraces a nationalist populist trajectory or pivots more fully toward liberal, pro-European policies. An exit poll by Ipsos would be released when polls close today at 9pm local time, with a margin of error of plus or minus 2 percentage points. Final results are expected tomorrow. Whoever wins can be expected to either help or hinder the
North Korea has detained another official over last week’s failed launch of a warship, which damaged the naval destroyer, state media reported yesterday. Pyongyang announced “a serious accident” at Wednesday last week’s launch ceremony, which crushed sections of the bottom of the new destroyer. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un called the mishap a “criminal act caused by absolute carelessness.” Ri Hyong-son, vice department director of the Munitions Industry Department of the Party Central Committee, was summoned and detained on Sunday, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported. He was “greatly responsible for the occurrence of the serious accident,” it said. Ri is the fourth person
The collapse of the Swiss Birch glacier serves as a chilling warning of the escalating dangers faced by communities worldwide living under the shadow of fragile ice, particularly in Asia, experts said. Footage of the collapse on Wednesday showed a huge cloud of ice and rubble hurtling down the mountainside into the hamlet of Blatten. Swiss Development Cooperation disaster risk reduction adviser Ali Neumann said that while the role of climate change in the case of Blatten “still needs to be investigated,” the wider impacts were clear on the cryosphere — the part of the world covered by frozen water. “Climate change and
RSS