Hard Times, Hard Man

Ariel Sharon built a reputation as one of Israel's canniest generals and gutsiest soldiers. Now, an inside look at his latest daring grab for political power

The heavy scents of bougainvillaea and manure mingle in the hot afternoon air at Shikmim Farm. Ariel Sharon pulls down the brim of his black Australian bush hat--a Jewish Crocodile Dundee. On his thick fingers, he is counting off the names his political enemies hurl at him: "Hard-liner. Extremist. Rightist. War criminal." His 1,500 acres on the edge of the Negev Desert is one of the few private farms in Israel and a refuge from the controversy that has followed him through 55 years in the military and in politics. Sharon, 72, the leader of Israel's right-wing Likud Party, leans his...

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