Israeli forces entered Gaza’s last Jewish settlement yesterday to complete evacuation from the territory as radicals opposed to ceding occupied land prepared for a last stand in the West Bank. The army expected little resistance from some 500 settlers at Netzarim, one of the first settlements founded in the Gaza Strip during nearly four decades of occupation and a frequent target of Palestinian militant attacks.

Most Gaza settlers have already been removed under Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s plan to “disengage” from conflict with the Palestinians — some weeping quietly, others kicking and screaming. Evacuations went much faster than planned.

“We knew this day would come, but we will get over it and move on,” said Netzarim’s Rabbi Eyal Vered. “We will win, but not with force. God forbid that blood will be spilled.” There was less optimism over Sanur and Homesh, two West Bank settlements that are also slated to go under Sharon’s plan.

Pullout opponents hope to make that withdrawal so traumatic, it will be much harder to ever consider giving up more West Bank settlements. Israeli forces finished emptying the main Gaza bloc of Gush Katif on Sunday.

Bulldozers set about razing the red-roofed homes under a deal with the Palestinians, who seek both Gaza and the West Bank, captured by Israel in a 1967 war, for a future state. Thanking evacuation squads near Gaza on Sunday, Sharon stressed there would be no further unilateral withdrawals from the West Bank, where Israel aims to keep settlements that are far bigger than those in Gaza.

<B>Possible violence to come</B>

“There will be building in the settlement blocs,” said Sharon, quoted by the Jerusalem Post newspaper. “I will build.” Sharon says further withdrawals will only come through talks with the Palestinians, which in turn depend on militants being disarmed under a U.S.-backed “road map” for peace. Israel has failed to meet its own commitment to freeze settlement building under that plan.

The World Court says Jewish settlements are illegal under international law. Israel disputes this. The last Gaza exits were peaceful, with settlers gathering in synagogues for final vigils before heading out en masse. The scenes contrasted with clashes last week between security forces and young radicals holed up to prevent evacuations.

Sanur and Homesh, the last of four West Bank settlements to go under Sharon’s plan, are the home turf for hardliners who see an even stronger biblical claim to the West Bank than to Gaza.

In a sign of possible violence to come, hundreds of young ultranationalists blocked bulldozers trying to carve out a camp for the army near Sanur on Sunday, scuffling with troops. “In Gaza, we received tears. In the West Bank, we’ll get a lot of sweat and everyone is praying we won’t see blood,” wrote Alex Fishman in Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper, Israel’s biggest.

The Palestinian Authority plans to take over Gaza settlement lands once the Israelis leave. President Mahmoud Abbas deployed forces to stop attacks by militants who have waged a 4-1/2-year-old uprising.

A full handover may not happen before October. All the homes will have to be demolished and army camps packed up. U.S.-led mediators see the move as a catalyst for reviving a Middle East peace process.

Palestinians are glad to see the back of the Gaza settlers and 500 more in the West Bank. But they fear Israel aims to keep forever most other West Bank settlements housing 230,000 people. Some 3.8 million Palestinians live in the West Bank and Gaza. Israeli rightists say the pullout is a victory for Palestinian militants, a view echoed by the gunmen.