 |
 |
 |
|
|
Sharon guffaws in a meeting with President Moshe Katzav (AP)
|
|
|
|
|
|
| By israelinsider staff and partners December 25, 2005 |
|
| |
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon on Sunday ordered the military to stop Palestinians from firing rockets at Israel from Gaza, officials said, implementing a plan that includes a no-go zone in northern Gaza to keep militants away from areas they use to launch the rockets.
The order came after high-level security consultations after the weekly Cabinet meeting, the officials said, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to disclose details.
Sharon, 77, returned to work Sunday, just a week after suffering a mild stroke.
|
|
|
|
"I hope you will all eat doughnuts and potato pancakes. You have permission to eat them, but I recommend that you don't overdo it."
Sharon, with a weight estimated between 258 and 313 pounds, gives holiday diet tips to ministers at Cabinet meeting
|
|
Since Israel pulled out of Gaza in the summer and removed all its settlements, militants have been able to come closer to the Gaza-Israel fence to launch homemade rockets -- bringing more Israeli towns and the city of Ashkelon into range.
Two rockets exploded south of Ashkelon in an industrial area, not far from an electric power station and other sensitive installations -- leading to the Israeli decision to act.
The centerpiece of the plan, officials said, is to ban Palestinians from parts of northern Gaza, declaring it a no-go zone where intruders can be shot.
Israel has not ruled out a ground operation, though it has not sent troops into Gaza since it completed its pullout in September and would be hesitant to re-enter the territory.
Instead, security officials say, Israel can keep track of movement in the area from the air. Israeli helicopters and pilotless drone aircraft are often seen in the Gaza skies. However, stormy weather in the past few days has held up implementation of the plan, Israeli media reported.
At the Sunday Cabinet meeting, Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz said Islamic Jihad was behind most of the rocket fire. A statement from the Cabinet office said Mofaz pledged to continue targeting Palestinian militant leaders in airstrikes.
Since resuming the "targeted killings" after five Israelis died in a Dec. 5 Palestinian suicide bombing in the seaside city of Netanya, Israel has killed eight militants in four airstrikes in Gaza.
Sharon spent most of last week resting after he was rushed to the hospital on Dec. 18. Doctors later said he suffered a mild stroke that had not caused any permanent damage. Sharon's blood pressure and cholesterol levels are normal despite his weight troubles, the doctors said.
The stroke has sparked calls for the prime minister to release his health records and set off rampant media speculation about his weight, with estimates ranging from 117 to 142 kilograms (258 to 313 pounds). The mass circulation daily Yediot Ahronot reported Sunday that Sharon has lost one kilogram (2.2 pounds) since the stroke.
Sharon, overweight and a self-admitted food lover, gave the ministers a tongue-in-cheek warning about the dangers of fried foods eaten during the eight-day Jewish holiday of Hanukkah, beginning at sunset. After last week's stroke, doctors urged Sharon to go on a diet.
"I hope you will all eat doughnuts and potato pancakes," Sharon said, smiling and evoking laughter. "You have permission to eat them, but I recommend that you don't overdo it."
The Haaretz daily wrote in an editorial Sunday that Sharon should serve as an example and go on a diet.
"One can demand from a man whose leadership abilities are so outstanding, in the army as well as on the political battlefield, to show the same leadership when it comes to the area of health," the paper wrote.
Sharon's doctors are scheduled to hold a briefing Monday to disclose details of his health.
The stroke has also turned Sharon's health into a campaign issue. Sharon hopes to win election to a third term as leader of a new centrist party in March 28 elections.
|
 
|
|
|
|
Click on the blue headline to read a Talkback comment and respond to it. Click on the  icon to send a private email to the talkback writer. The icon appears only if the writer has decided to be contacted. If no popup window appears, please make sure your popup blocker allows israelinsider.com.
|
|
| |
|
|
