Gaza pullout vote may spark settler violence

The Israeli parliament easily passed Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s contentious plan to pull out of Gaza and part of the West Bank, approving compensation of hundreds of thousands of shekels to families of settlers to be evacuated.

The 59 to 40 vote yesterday was the final parliamentary endorsement, but the pullout, marking the first time Israel would remove veteran settlements from the West Bank and Gaza, still has many obstacles to overcome.