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Finance Minister Netanyahu resigns in protest of
pullout

JPost.com Staff

Aug. 7, 2005

Finance Minister Binyamin Netanyahu announced his
resignation from the government Sunday afternoon in
protest of Israel's plan to withdraw from the Gaza
Strip and northern Samaria.

His resignation, which came during a Sunday cabinet
meeting to approve the first step of the evacuations,
did not succeed in torpedoing the vote. It was easily
passed 17-5.

Netanyahu will hold a press conference Sunday evening
at 6:00 p.m. to explain the reasons for his
resignation.

The resignation will take effect within 48 hours of
the time that he placed a resignation letter on the
prime minister's desk, Sunday afternoon shortly before
4:00 p.m.

Netanyahu, a former prime minister and political
hardliner, has long been conflicted over the Gaza
withdrawal. He has voted in favor of the pullout in
the cabinet, but tried to thwart the plan in
parliamentary maneuvers.

Netanyahu's dramatic decision was unlikely to affect
the disengagement. However, a number of Likud rebels
expressed their hopes that Netanyahu's move will
prompt a wave of additional resignations, which would
ultimately lead to the government's collapse, Channel
1 noted.

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said that the evacuation
of settlements would continue as planned, Israel Radio
reported.

The finance minister is considered Sharon's biggest
political rival within the ruling Likud Party. He was
expected to challenge Sharon for party leadership
ahead of the next election.

The Tel Aviv stock Exchange's Maof index dropped 2.5
percent in six minutes following news of the
resignation. Netanyahu had led efforts to streamline
the Israeli economy, often adopting harsh measures in
implementing his plan.

Meanwhile, Education Minister Limor Livnat announced
she would vote against the first evacuation of
settlements because of Sharon's decision to hold the
second vote on settlement evacuations before the first
settlement evacuation is completed.

I think this is just gauntlet dropping for the next election