Sharon faces public backlash over scam

The poll in the Yedioth Ahronoth daily found that 53 percent of those surveyed believe Sharon should resign, while 43 percent want him to stay on. It was a stunning reversal for the 76-year-old leader, elected by landslides in 2001 and 2003.

A Sharon confidant blamed his troubles on "extreme right-wing" opponents of his unilateral plan to evacuate Jewish settlements in the Gaza Strip and several in the West Bank should a US-backed peace "road map" fail.

Tap Here to Add The Daily Star As A Trusted Source

Sharon's political enemies, he said, were out to taint and topple their former ally, who has warned the Palestinians that his go-it-alone moves would leave them with less land than they seek for a state.

Already under investigation in two separate corruption scandals, Sharon came under another cloud this week when the Maariv newspaper alleged misconduct in a numerically lop-sided prisoner swap with Hizbollah guerrillas.

Confused by the murky details of the earlier scandals -- one involving a Greek real estate deal and the other a loan from a foreign friend -- Israelis saw little mystery in the latest affair.