Sharon Wins Key Party Ballot

Israeli PM Fends Off Challenge From Likud Rival On Election Timing

(AP) 
Later Monday, aircraft fired missiles at an empty field militants used to launch rockets at Israel, a strike meant to deter further attacks, the military said.

Israel pressed ahead with its air campaign despite Hamas leader Mahmoud Zahar's call on militants to end the rocket attacks. Zahar said Hamas remained committed to a seven-month-old cease-fire and he wanted to prevent further Israeli attacks.

Even if Hamas stops its rocket attacks, it remained unclear whether smaller militant groups would follow suit. Islamic Jihad said it would not observe the truce after an Israeli air strike Sunday killed one of its top commanders in Gaza.

Israeli security officials said they would wait to see whether the Palestinian attacks would end before calling off the offensive. On Monday afternoon, militants launched a mortar shell at an Israeli community north of Gaza, causing no injuries or damage, the army said.

"I hope that members of the party will come to vote against this proposal, which will badly harm the Likud," a smiling Sharon said as he cast his ballot Monday afternoon.

Sharon's allies had said a loss in the vote would make him a lame-duck prime minister and might push him to resign from the increasingly hawkish party and form a new centrist party, which he would lead into general elections.

Recent polls show a new party led by Sharon would sweep elections, winning more than twice the seats of a Netanyahu-led Likud.

As head of Likud, Sharon has had to fight against hard-line lawmakers in the party to implement his policies, and rebellious Likud parliamentarians repeatedly tried to bring down his government to stop the Gaza withdrawal.

Late Sunday, Sharon was thwarted from addressing a party convention when his microphone cut out twice. Likud officials said the sound system had been sabotaged. After waiting nearly half an hour, Sharon left the hall without speaking.