Embattled Sharon vows to press on with Gaza pull-out

ISRAELI Prime Minister Ariel Sharon vowed yesterday he would push ahead with a withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, despite a stinging setback to the plan from his Likud Party.

A Likud convention voted overwhelmingly last night to bar Mr Sharon from inviting the opposition Labour Party into the government.

Although Mr Sharon insisted the vote was not binding, it could endanger the Gaza withdrawal, which he hopes to complete next year. Mr Sharon is courting Labour to shore up support in parliament for the withdrawal plan.

The vote was Mr Sharon's second major setback from the party. In May, a non-binding Likud referendum rejected the withdrawal plan by a 60-40 margin.

In his first public reaction to the vote, Mr Sharon's office said yesterday that "the prime minister is determined to continue with the disengagement plan and the diplomatic process and he will try to build a stable coalition." A government official refused to say whether Mr Sharon would continue talks with Labour. The prime minister could also seek smaller religious parties to bolster his coalition.

Mr Sharon, who has lost his parliamentary majority because of the plan, opened negotiations with Labour leader Shimon Peres last month. He will need parliamentary and Cabinet approval for the plan in the coming months in order to proceed.

The Likud vote, however, could stall or even scuttle those efforts. Mr Sharon will find it hard to muster a parliamentary majority without Labour.

Opponents warned that following the vote, Mr Sharon would not be able to approach Labour now. "Sharon cannot ignore the wishes of his party," said Likud MP Michael Ratzon.

Labour denounced the results, saying Likud had become "a movement that destroys all chances to bring about an end to violence in the region." Their statement said "elections must be called immediately."

General elections are due by 2006, and a new government could be a short-term affair.

Likud-Labour coalition negotiations stalled earlier over domestic issues.

Meanwhile, Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat rebuffed the latest challenge to his authority, refusing to sign anti-corruption legislation demanded by MPs.

In a speech to parliament, Mr Arafat admitted yesterday to making "mistakes" and pledged to clean up the Palestinian Authority.

But in a "stormy and tense" follow-up meeting, he told pro-reform MPs "that his speech ... was enough and that there is no need for any signatures," said Azmi Shouabi, one of the meeting's participants.

Mr Shouabi said the MPs had agreed to meet Arafat one more time before submitting a report to parliament next week.

Mr Arafat has been under intense local and international pressure to reform his government and relinquish some of his powers, but has repeatedly balked.

Although Mr Arafat does not appear to be in danger of being overthrown, the public criticism has reached an unprecedented level.