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May 27, 1999
Web posted at: 6:57 p.m. EDT (2257 GMT)

TEL AVIV, Israel (CNN) -- Sent off by the singing and cheering of an emotional crowd of supporters, outgoing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu dropped out of politics on Thursday, 10 days after suffering a landslide defeat in his bid for re-election.

Netanyahu, who resigned as leader of the Likud party on election night May 17, announced Thursday that he would also give up his seat in the Knesset, Israel's parliament.

"I will resign from the Knesset but in no way will I resign from the struggle for the future of Israel," he told the party's central committee members at a gathering in Tel Aviv.

Likud members waved banners that read "Bibi, don't quit," and chanted "Bibi, we love you," referring to Netanyahu by his nickname.

In his first political speech since his defeat, Netanyahu listed what he felt were his greatest achievements -- a demand for reciprocity in peace talks with the Palestinians and a weakening of Arab demands at the negotiating table.

He also said he had maintained sovereignty over areas of Jerusalem claimed by Palestinians, protected Jewish settlements on war-captured territory and lowered inflation.

Netanyahu did not specify his plans for the future, but aides said he will write a book and hit the lucrative lecture circuit.

Sharon seeks ways to rehabilitate Likud

Ariel Sharon, Netanyahu's hawkish foreign minister, was voted temporary Likud party chairman until primaries later this year.

Sharon said he had yet to decide whether to stand for formal leadership of the party, a move that would make him a possible candidate for prime minister in the next election in 2003.

Sharon's first move was to appoint a committee to explore ways to rehabilitate the Likud. He said he would let party members decide whether to join a coalition government led by Labor Party leader Ehud Barak.

Although he lost the election to Barak, Netanyahu remains in office until Barak forms a new government -- a process that could take until early July.

Correspondent Jerrold Kessel, The Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.