Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has vowed to press ahead with his Gaza pullout plan despite failing to persuade his party to support a coalition with Labour.
The Likud party's convention voted against Labour joining a new broad-based coalition by 843 votes to 612 in Tel Aviv last night
If Mr Sharon defies the vote as he has done before, he could provoke a split in the party or risk early elections, which could stall any withdrawal from the Gaza Strip.
But if he complies, he will find it hard to muster a cabinet majority to implement his blueprint for disengaging from conflict with the Palestinians.
