More than 100,000 Israelis joined hands in a human chain from Jerusalem to the Gaza Strip to protest against Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s plan to pull Jewish settlers from the occupied territory.

The biggest demonstration since the initiative was proposed in February sent a clear signal of the political battle facing Sharon, who has done an about turn from one-time godfather of the movement to settle land captured in the 1967 war.

“This chain is a sign of strength,” said Anita Tucker, one of the 8,000 settlers living in heavily-protected Gaza enclaves alongside more than 1.3 million Palestinians.

“Most of the people love the land of Israel and don’t want to see anything destroyed,” she said.

Organisers said some 200,000 took part, while police estimated the crowd at 130,000. Under Sharon’s plan for “disengagement” from nearly four years of conflict with the Palestinians, all 21 settlements in Gaza and four of 120 in the West Bank would be evacuated by the end of next year.

While polls show that most Israelis would happily relinquish Gaza as too costly in money and blood, many right-wingers are against giving up land to the Palestinians and say it would be a “reward for Palestinian terror”.

Underscoring the precariousness of the settlements, Palestinian militants fired a missile into the main Gush Katif settlement bloc as the protest broke up. Six people were wounded, among them children. One was hurt seriously. Israeli soldiers fired back at neighbouring Khan Yunis, wounding seven Palestinians including five children, medics said.

The 90 km human chain stretched from the northern Gaza Strip to Jerusalem’s Western Wall, Judaism’s holiest shrine. Police ordered an 8 km gap outside Jerusalem for security reasons.

Busloads of protesters descended on Jerusalem, many waving Israeli flags and dressed in orange caps or shirts – the colour chosen to represent the Gaza Strip’s sub-tropical climate.

<B>Gwen Ackerman</B>