Prime Minister Ariel Sharon says there is now a window of opportunity for peace. "I believe that the conditions are now ripe to allow us and the Palestinians to reach a historic breakthrough in the relations between us," Sharon said in a speech in Tel Aviv. His upbeat assessment came after the new Palestinian leadership banned civilians from carrying weapons, a signal that it wants to seize control of the streets from terrorist groups. "If the Palestinians act in a comprehensive fashion to fight terror, violence and incitement, we can move forward to the process of implementing the 'roadmap'” peace plan, Sharon said. “And then we can coordinate various activities with them regarding the plan to disengage" from the Gaza Strip.