JERUSALEM, Aug 24: Israel said on Wednesday all its soldiers would be out of the Gaza Strip within a month, ending four decades of occupation after the historic pullout of Jewish settlers from the Palestinian territory.

A day after Israel uprooted settlers from 21 Gaza settlements and four in the West Bank in just a week, Defence Minister Shaul Mofaz confirmed that the equally momentous departure of his troops was being fast-tracked as well.

But with the images of settlers being hauled kicking and screaming by fellow Jews from the heart of Biblical Israel still fresh, Mr Mofaz said it was too soon to expect further evacuations in the occupied West Bank.

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has won plaudits for overseeing the first-ever evacuation from occupied Palestinian territory, with US President George Bush praising him for changing the dynamics of the peace process.

Back home however, he was being urged to use the momentum to embark on a more comprehensive move against the rest of the around 130 settlements.

The reality of the rapid completion of the operation, which saw settlers weep tears of rage and impotence as troops stormed their homes and synagogues, was being rammed home as bulldozers reduced evacuated homes in Gaza to rubble.

Mr Sharon himself expressed relief that the evacuations had passed off largely peacefully, especially in the northern West Bank settlements of Sanur and Homesh, where there had been predictions of a bloodbath.

“I think that this finished pretty well in comparison to our concerns,” Mr Sharon said at a meeting of ministers.—AFP