The Guardian: International outcry forced Sharon out of Gaza

"Israel's hard-line Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, was forced to order out his tanks from territory recaptured from the Palestinians in Gaza, in the face of unprecedented international condemnation," the Guardian newspaper said on Wednesday.

"The withdrawal decision came only hours after a senior Israeli army general promised that the military occupation could last for weeks or even months," the paper said.

Mr. Sharon's spokesman, Raanan Gissin, claimed that this was according to plan: "we always said that it will happen when the military operation ends," he said.

"The apparent about-turn followed an unusually outspoken intervention by the American Secretary of State, Colin Powell, who accused the Israeli army of an "excessive and disproportionate" response to Palestinian mortar attacks," the paper noted.