A clear sign of the nearness of the Rapture and the Day of the Lord: Surely
this is the time to WAKE UP, trim your wick (repent of any sin) and make
sure your lamp is filled with Oil:Before the decree bring forth, before the day pass as the chaff, before the
fierce anger of the LORD come upon you, before the day of the LORD'S anger
come upon you.Seek ye the LORD, all ye meek of the earth, which have wrought his judgment;
seek righteousness, seek meekness: it may be ye shall be hid in the day of
the LORD'S anger.For Gaza shall be forsaken, and Ashkelon a desolation: they shall drive out
Ashdod at the noon day, and Ekron shall be rooted up. (Zepheniah 2:2-4)
Israeli Parliament OKs Gaza Withdrawal
By RAMIT PLUSHNICK-MASTI, Associated Press Writer
JERUSALEM - Prime Minister Ariel Sharon (news - web sites), bolstered by the
approval of his Gaza withdrawal plan by parliament, said he will stand firm
against rebels in his Likud Party who threatened to resign unless a
referendum is held.However, the turmoil raised new doubt about Sharon's ability to go ahead
with a withdrawal from the Gaza Strip (news - web sites) and parts of the
West Bank next summer, as pledged.A resignation of senior Likud ministers, including Sharon's top rival,
Finance Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (news - web sites), could lead to
elections in coming months, and delay implementation of a withdrawal.
Alternately, Sharon could try to reshuffle his coalition, and bring in the
moderate Labor Party.In Tuesday's historic vote, parliament for the first time approved the
dismantling of Jewish settlements in lands Israel occupied in the 1967
Mideast war and which are claimed by the Palestinians for a state.Sharon won by a comfortable margin, with 67 legislators in favor, 45 against
and seven abstaining. However, nearly half the Likud legislators and two
religious parties voted against him, underscoring Sharon's break with his
former constituency.The prime minister said he would not be swayed.
"I will never give in to pressures and threats, and I won't accept any
ultimatums," Sharon told the Haaretz daily, referring to the Likud rebels.
"My position on the referendum is unchanged. I am opposed to it because it
will lead to terrible tensions and a rift in the public."Sharon suggested he would try to avoid early elections, telling the Yediot
Ahronot daily that "I can promise you that I will have a coalition that will
continue to run this country."Sharon has said giving up Gaza and parts of the West Bank would boost
Israel's security and help ensure the country's identity as a Jewish
democracy. However, he also intends to keep large West Bank settlement and
east Jerusalem, areas the Palestinians also seek for their state.The Labor Party has said that even if it did not formally join Sharon's
government, it would support his "unilateral disengagement" from the
Palestinians without conditions.In Washington, a State Department spokesman, Adam Ereli, praised the vote as
"an opportunity to advance the interests of both sides."On Tuesday, thousands of Jewish settlers demonstrated outside the Knesset,
or parliament, in a boisterous show of force, denouncing Sharon as a
traitor."I came here to tell the people of Israel that this is our land and my
home," said David Pinipnta, 31, of the Gaza settlement of Neve Dekalim. "No
power on earth can move me from it."Sharon entered the parliament building surrounded by an unprecedented 16
bodyguards - reflecting security officials' fears of an attack by right-wing
extremists who believe the prime minister is forsaking God's will by giving
up parts of the Biblical Land of Israel.Posters outside the Knesset declared that "Sharon has disengaged from
reality" and "the evacuation of settlements is a victory for terror."The Knesset vote took place on the anniversary of two events that embodied
the Jewish state's history of bloodshed and yearning: the assassination of
Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin (news - web sites) nine years ago on the Jewish
calendar and the Israel-Jordan peace treaty, signed on Oct. 26, 1994.Notably absent from Israel's debate on withdrawing from Palestinian
territories are the Palestinians themselves, whom Israel accuses of being
unreliable negotiating partners.Palestinian Cabinet Minister Saeb Erekat said Israel should not be making
unilateral decisions about the Palestinians' future. "Now the seriousness of
the Israeli government will depend on resuming negotiations with the
Palestinian Authority (news - web sites)."Tuesday's vote came as speculation mounted that Palestinian leader Yasser
Arafat (news - web sites), confined to his West Bank headquarters for the
past two years, may be seriously ill.Arafat has a large gallstone that is not life threatening, a Palestinian
hospital official told The Associated Press. But the 75-year-old leader
broke his Ramadan fast and underwent medical tests, and a Palestinian doctor
who has examined him recently said he has been inexplicably exhausted in
recent weeks. Israeli officials speculated he was suffering from stomach
cancer.After Tuesday's parliament vote, Sharon fired Uzi Landau, a Cabinet minister
who voted against him.The referendum initiative got a boost when the National Religious Party, a
key part of Sharon's coalition, announced just before the vote that it will
quit within two weeks unless the parliament vote is accompanied by a pledge
to hold a such a vote.Four Likud ministers - Netanyahu, Limor Livnat, Yisrael Katz and Danny Naveh
- voted for the plan and then immediately demanded Sharon accept the NRP
ultimatum or they would resign from the government.Vice Premier Ehud Olmert denounced the threat, saying that the backroom
maneuvers showed "a lack of fortitude, a lack of ability to stand up to
pressure."Sharon would probably win a referendum, with opinion polls showing well over
half of Israelis support the withdrawal. But Sharon and his new supporters
say there's no time for one.The government hopes to complete the withdrawal next year, and must still
submit to several more parliamentary votes to implement various stages of
the pullout.Maranatha,
David