Sharon dismisses peace plan

Israel’s prime minister Ariel Sharon has said Europe is too biased against Israel to be a Middle East mediator, and a top aide said the premier did not consider a US-backed plan for Palestinian statehood to be realistic.

Sharon has repeatedly promised to seek peace and make ”painful concessions” if re-elected on January 28, but opponents said his latest positions showed he had no vision for ending the 28 months of deadly violence.