Member of Knesset (parliament) Benny Elon (National Union) spent the Sabbath across from Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s 1,000-acre ranch in the Negev to protest the government’s Gaza withdrawal. Police prevented residents of Sderot, just outside Gaza, who wanted to join the protest, from coming. The former tourism minister, who was fired for opposing the Prime Minister’s withdrawal plan, told reporters that Israel has become a “police state,” using its authority to “gag people” and restrict people’s freedom of movement indiscriminately.