Fighting Battle Of Jericho Again
Israeli and Palestinian government ministers presented conflicting versions Tuesday of their negotiations on the handover of the West Bank town of Jericho, with the Palestinian official saying Israel had acceded to his demands and Israel's defense minister denying the claim.
At issue is the removal of Israeli army roadblocks and how much territory would be handed over. The eventual agreement on Jericho could set an important precedent for planned Israeli pullbacks from four more West Bank towns in coming weeks.
In other developments:
The parliament vote is to be followed Sunday by a Cabinet endorsement of the pullout plan, already authorized by the government in principle several months ago. The procedural vote is necessary because the Justice Ministry ruled that Jewish settlers who will be forced out of their homes must be given five months' notice. The Cabinet will be asked later to vote on each of the withdrawal's four phases as they come up.
The handover of five West Bank towns to Palestinian control was agreed on in principle by Sharon and Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas at a meeting last week. However, a dispute over the removal of roadblocks and the area to be handed over held up the first Israeli pullback, from Jericho.
Israel wants to retain the main roadblock at the entrance to Jericho and refuses to hand over the adjacent village of Al Awja, since a highway used by Israelis runs through it.
The Palestinians consider Jericho a test case for future withdrawals, and want Israel to remove the roadblocks ringing the town. In the past, Israel temporarily pulled out of some West Bank towns, but left roadblocks in place, severely restricting Palestinian travel.
Palestinian Cabinet minister Saeb Erekat, who met late Monday with Sharon aide Dov Weisglass, said Tuesday that Israel now agrees to remove the main roadblock and hand over Al Awja, and that he expected the handover to take place Wednesday.
However, Israeli Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz denied the claim. "This might be his (Erekat's) goal, but I believe that the army's position, which I approved, is the correct position," he said on Israel Army Radio.
He said both sides want to see that handover take place, but Israel doesn't want to take "too many risks when the Palestinians are not able to guarantee security."
The United States has urged Israel to move quickly to improve the lives of ordinary Palestinians in order to boost support for Abbas. A removal of roadblocks would be the clearest sign of change, but Israel is reluctant, citing security concerns. Israel set up a network of roadblocks in the West Bank after the outbreak of fighting in 2000, to keep Palestinian suicide bombers and gunmen out of Israel.
Meanwhile, Israeli Army Radio reported that some leaders of the Settlers' Council condemned Monday's protests attempting to block major intersections across the country, calling them counterproductive.
The settlers, at a rally in one of the settlements, launched their newest campaign gimmick: an orange bracelet sporting the slogan "Let the people decide."
The designers of the "Struggle Bracelet" say they got the idea from American cyclist Lance Armstrong, who wears a yellow bracelet symbolizing his fight against cancer.