Since Prime Minister Sharon has publicly stated that he is in favor of a Palestinian State – once his conditions are met – it would appear that there is some dissent among the ranks.

Since March 29, Prime Minister Sharon has been leading “Operation Defensive Shield”, with the intention of eliminating the terrorist threat to Israel The United States has given him its full backing, while also publicly calling for a Palestinian State, in accordance with International Law.

During “Operation Defensive Shield”, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) destroyed the

written and computer records of the Palestinian Authority, concerning Health, Education, Transport, History, Land Ownership, etc. The IDF has also assassinated many of the leaders of the Palestinian Authority and destroyed its headquarters in Ramallah. The very basics of governance have been eliminated.

Although Prime Minister Sharon has publicly distanced himself from the Likud decision, as has the United States, the actions of “Operation Defensive Shield” are fully in accord with the denial of a Palestinian State.

In fact, Ariel Sharon has put into practice the Likud party policy, even before it was publicly articulated.

During this same week, B’Tselem, an Israeli Human Rights group released a report on the Israeli Settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories, showing that although the Settlements are built on only 1.7% of West Bank land, they actually control 41.9% of it .

The full report “Land Grab: Israel’s Settlement Policy in the West Bank” can be read at: http://www.btselem.org