The acting leader of the ruling Likud party, Tsahi Hanegbi, has quit and joined Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's new Forward Party. "It is my deep belief that the good of the country demands the continuation of Ariel Sharon's term as prime minister," Hanegbi told a news conference. "Only Ariel Sharon can lead the state of Israel to the strategic steps it must take." Those steps are said to include Israeli withdrawals from parts of Judea and Samaria, as Sharon seeks to fulfill his vision of defensible borders. Since chances for a peace deal with the Palestinians appear nil, this pullout is expected to be unilateral.