■ Israel
Sharon warns settlers
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon sent a stern warning to Jewish settlers opposed to the Gaza pullout plan yesterday, telling them that the use of violence against security forces threatens the existence of Israel. Sharon said settlers who use violence -- like the ones who pushed, shoved and cursed soldiers who demolished 11 abandoned homes in a seaside Gaza settlement earlier this week -- were a minority among the 9,000 slated for evacuation this summer. He also condemned calls for soldiers to refuse orders to evacuate settlers under a plan to withdraw from Gaza and four West Bank settlements.
■ United States
Gold Star moms change rule
A group for mothers whose children died in war voted to allow non-US citizens to join, after coming under criticism for denying membership to a Filipina mother whose son was killed in Afghanistan. The 1929 charter of American Gold Star Mothers had prevented foreign citizens from joining. Earlier this year, the organization's 12-member executive board voted against changing the rule. That prevented Ligaya Lagman, of Yonkers, New York, from joining, although she is a legal resident and her son, 27-year-old Army Staff Sergeant Anthony Lagman, was a US citizen. After hearing about her interest in joining, New York Governor George Pataki and other lawmakers urged the group to change its rules.
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