Jewish settlers’ leaders warned Israel’s army chief that hundreds, and possibly thousands, of soldiers could refuse to carry out orders to evacuate them from the Gaza Strip if the government went ahead with its plan to withdraw from the coastal area later this year.

In a sign of the fierce opposition that could accompany Israel’s planned withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, a Jewish settler leader has made a public call for his followers to break the law when fighting against the evacuation.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has rejected calls from Jewish settlers to hold a nationwide referendum on his plan to withdraw from the Gaza Strip, escalating an increasingly bitter dispute between the onetime allies.

Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas said today that he will not use force to disarm the militant groups under any circumstances, despite two shootings over the weekend that killed five Israeli soldiers.