Tel Aviv, Israel ? Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s revised “unilateral disengagement” plan has four stages, replacing a proposal for a one-step pullout from the Gaza Strip, an Israeli official said Wednesday.

Sharon is to present the new formula to Cabinet ministers today, ahead of a Cabinet debate Sunday, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. He declined to give details of the four stages.

Media reports indicate the process would start with evacuating three or four isolated settlements in the Gaza Strip. That would be followed by removal of the other Gaza settlements, a military redeployment in Gaza and evacuation of four small settlements in the northern West Bank.

The order of the steps is not known, nor is the timetable for enacting them, though it is not expected to be quick. Sharon has pledged to complete construction of a separation barrier before making any moves in the West Bank, and that is about a year away.

Israel says it needs the barrier to stop Palestinian suicide bombers and other infiltrators who have killed hundreds of Israelis during more than three years of Palestinian-Israeli violence. Palestinians object to the route, which dips deep into the West Bank to enclose main Jewish settlements.

Sharon’s Likud Party turned down his original plan in a May 2 referendum, though it had U.S. backing. After the party veto, the “Quartet” of Mideast mediators — the United States, European Union, Russia and the United Nations — also endorsed the pullout plan.

Palestinians have been ambivalent about the proposal, demanding coordination with the Israelis over a withdrawal but welcoming, in principle, any Israeli evacuation of the Palestinian areas.

Sharon has said he would coordinate the pullout with the United States and Egypt but has no intention of discussing it with the Palestinians. Sharon contends the Palestinian leadership, especially Yasser Arafat, is involved in violence against Israel and has failed to take any steps to rein in militant groups.

Analysts say the revised plan will cause Sharon as much trouble as his original one, because opponents object to evacuating settlements. They would just as vigorously oppose a blueprint for removing a few at a time as they would a one-step program.