Sharon to Discuss a Labor Coalition

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said Thursday that he would open talks with the opposition Labor Party to form a broad coalition government, a union that would give the Israeli leader much-needed support as he pushed forward with his contentious Gaza Strip withdrawal plan.

Sharon had been widely expected to invite Labor into the fragile government after hard-line opposition to the plan left him with a minority coalition, threatening his political survival.

Addressing an economic conference in the coastal town of Caesarea, Sharon told the audience that he was “very satisfied” with his current government.

“But ... if it becomes apparent that [the Gaza withdrawal] is not possible, then I will have to form a different coalition,” he said, adding that he had scheduled a meeting Sunday with Labor leader Shimon Peres “to discuss the possibility of expanding the coalition.”

Peres, a veteran of Israeli politics and a Nobel peace laureate, has sent mixed signals about his readiness to join the government.

Although Labor has helped Sharon by blocking several attempts in parliament to topple the prime minister through no-confidence votes, Peres has set some tough demands for joining the coalition. Peres spokesman Yoram Dori would say only that the Labor leader had accepted an invitation to meet with Sharon.

Sharon plans to pull all Israeli troops from the Gaza Strip by September 2005. He also plans by then to withdraw the 7,500 Jewish settlers who live among 1.3 million Palestinians in Gaza, and residents of four isolated settlements in the West Bank.

The proposal is part of his plan that aims to reduce friction with the Palestinians and boost Israel’s security.

In a recent interview, Peres said he would not join the government unless Sharon agreed to negotiate the Gaza evacuation with the Palestinians and to commit to a much larger withdrawal from the West Bank. Sharon refuses to negotiate directly with the Palestinians.

Although a solid majority of Israelis support his plan, Sharon faces significant opposition from voters from his Likud Party.