Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon warned the settlers who appose his disengagement plan that if they use violence they will be considered as threatening the security of Israel.
Also, the Israeli minister of defense Shaul Mofaz warned the settlers not to harm the soldiers who are sent by their government to “perform their dutiesâ€Â.
Sharon, speaking at the annual conference of the Jewish Agency in Jerusalem, said that violent settlers who used violence against the soldiers who demolished 11 abandoned homes in a seaside Gaza settlement on Sunday, are considered a minority among 9000 settlers slated for evacuation.
Sharon also condemned calls for soldiers to reject military orders to evacuate the settlements in August when Israel starts implementing the disengagement plan.
“These calls to refuse and disrupt life in Israel are considered a threat to the existence of the Jewish, democratic stateâ€Â, Sharon added.
Mofaz said last Thursday that the ‘disagreements should be directed at the political leadership, not at the soldiers’.
Mofaz added that he intends to ask Attorney General Menachem Mazuz and the government to employ all legal means to prosecute and bring to justice anyone who tries to harm the soldiers.
“Refusing military orders is a very dangerous aspect, the army will handle this issue severelyâ€Â, Mofaz said in response to the case of Corporal Avi Bieber who rejected to evacuate the Gaza illegal outpost Sunday.
Monday, a threatening letter was sent to the Israeli Army chief of Staff Lieutenant General Dan Halutz at the army high command in Tel Aviv.
The letter reads, “If your family is important to you, abstain yourself from following the path of the prime ministerâ€Â.
The army higher command believes that the letter is related to efforts to foil the disengagement plan.
Army security activities were slightly increased around Halutz’s home, and the police boosted their presence and patrols in the area.
