Jerusalem: Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said today (Oct 25, 2004) he was determined to carry out his "disengagement" plan that requires all Israeli settlers to leave Gaza Strip and four isolated settlements in the West Bank.

Opening the debate on the plan in the Knesset amid heckling from opponents of evacuation, Sharon said his plan would lead Israelis forward on the path to peace with the Palestinians and "strengthen Israel".

He said he understood that Israelis living in Gaza were sent there by the Government and abandoning their homes would be a painful experience for them.

Sharon also blasted Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat for giving the conflict a religious twist.

"Arafat chose the path of blood, fire and martyrs to transform a national conflict into a religious war."

Sharon denied the charge that his position on the disengagement plan was contrary to his actions and stance in the past. "I repeatedly stated in an overt fashion that I support a Palestinian State and that I am prepared to take painful steps," he said.

He had told then-Likud Prime Minister Yitzhak Shamir as early as 1988 that "If we don't want to be forced to the 1967 (pre Six-Day War) borders, we need to bring about a separation of territory," he stated.

Less than 15 minutes into the Sharon's speech, the chairman of the National Religious Party (NRP), Effi Eitam, was ejected from the plenum by Knesset Speaker Reuven Rivlin for his repeated interruptions.