SHARON PREPARES MAJOR WITHDRAWAL

TEL AVIV [MENL] -- Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has drafted a plan
for a withdrawal from virtually all of the West Bank by 2008.

Political sources said Sharon has begun briefing senior U.S. officials of
his intention to withdraw unilaterally from more than 95 percent of the West
Bank. They said Sharon, who quit the ruling Likud Party on Nov. 21, would
seek a U.S. and international security presence in the area as well as a
commitment for the dismantling of Palestinian insurgency groups.

"His decision [to quit the Likud] stems from his desire to bring the state
of Israel to permanent borders during his term of office," Eli Landau, a
longtime confidante of Sharon, said. "He knows that this step will be a
dramatic one."

The sources said Sharon's plan was based on an assessment that the
Palestinian Authority was not prepared to sign a formal peace agreement with
Israel. They said that under this scenario Sharon would order a unilateral
withdrawal from more than 90 percent of the West Bank, but retain control
over air space.
====
NOTE: The above is not the full item.
This service contains only a small portion of the information produced daily
by Middle East Newsline. For a subscription to the full service, please
contact Middle East Newsline at:
editor@menewsline.com for further details.