Sharon to present new plan

2004-05-09 13:47

Jerusalem - Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is to set out a new plan for "disengaging" from the Palestinians by the end of May after his right-wing Likud party rejected a previous version, army radio reported on Sunday.

The new plan is to be put before the government for a vote, the radio added.

The announcement was made at the cabinet's weekly meeting during which ministers discussed the way forward after a Likud membership ballot early last week rejected Sharon's original proposals to pull back from nearly all the Gaza Strip and four Jewish settlements in the West Bank.

That plan had received controversial backing from US President George W Bush following White House talks with the Israeli premier last month.

Since the ballot setback, Sharon has been engaged in consultations with ministers from the Likud and other coalition parties in a bid to break the impasse.

He told ministers that as a result he would not be going ahead with a planned visit to Washington later this month, during which he had been expected to hold new talks with Bush.

Israeli commentators said Sharon had cancelled the trip to avoid turning up empty-handed at the White House.

- AFP