Tensions rise as Israel rejects call to postpone Gaza pullout

ISRAEL'S cabinet yesterday rejected a proposal to delay the start of a Gaza pullout for three months, setting the stage for a showdown between Ariel Sharon, the prime minister, and Benjamin Netanyahu, his main political rival.

The attempt to force Mr Sharon to postpone the withdrawal, set to begin in mid-August, was a sharp reminder of the opposition he faces within his right-wing Likud party to the plan he has championed, and a sign of internal leadership battles ahead.

Fears that ultra-nationalist opponents of the pull-out might attack Israeli leaders surfaced when Shin Bet, the security service, fitted cabinet members for new bulletproof vests before they convened.

Mr Sharon aims to evacuate all 21 Jewish settlements in Gaza, which is home to 1.3 million Palestinians, and four of 120 in the West Bank.