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Rachel's tomb: within the Jerusalem envelope
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| By Israel Insider staff and partners March 14, 2005 |
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The final route of Israel's separation barrier around Jerusalem will encompass large areas claimed by the Palestinians, including their intended capital and the biggest Jewish settlement in the West Bank, Israeli officials confirmed Monday, prompting Palestinian complaints that Israel is drawing its borders unilaterally.
The route would also place a holy site in the town of Bethlehem on the Israeli side of the barrier, while leaving a Palestinian refugee camp in Jerusalem encircled by a separate fence, the Israeli officials said.
Late Monday, Israeli and Palestinian Cabinet ministers agreed again on a handover of the West Bank town of Jericho to Palestinian security control. Earlier agreements fell through over details about roadblocks.
Israeli officials said the handover is set for Wednesday, to be followed two or three days later by Tulkarem and then Qalqiliya. Two other towns are to he transferred to Palestinian control as well -- Bethlehem and Ramallah -- but those were not agreed on at the Monday meeting between Palestinian Interior Minister Nasser Yousef and Israeli Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz.
Israel began building the barrier in the West Bank two years ago, saying it was needed to keep out Palestinian attackers. Palestinians say the structure, which dips into the West Bank, is an attempt by Israel to impose a border without waiting for a peace deal.
The section around Jerusalem is especially sensitive. The Palestinians hope to establish their capital in east Jerusalem, a traditional Arab commercial, religious and social center. Israel, which captured east Jerusalem in the 1967 Mideast war, claims all of the city as its capital.
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon convened a meeting of senior Cabinet ministers late Sunday to discuss the final route of the barrier, which received Cabinet approval last month.
Under the plan, the West Bank settlement of Maaleh Adumim, which lies 8 kilometers (5 miles) east of Jerusalem, would be on the Israeli side of the barrier, Israeli officials said. About 30,000 Israelis live in Maaleh Adumim, the largest Jewish settlement.
"Does anyone have even the slightest doubt that Maaleh Adumim is an integral part of Israel?" said Israeli Vice Premier Ehud Olmert, who heads a ministerial committee on the Jerusalem barrier.
But Sharon?s other deputy, Labor?s Shimon Peres, said the fate of the town was still undecided.
A senior Israeli official said the committee is planning 11 crossings through the barrier to allow access from the West Bank.
The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said construction is to be completed by the end of the year, adding that no major changes in the route are expected. A number of legal challenges filed by Palestinian villagers are still pending in Israeli courts.
The Palestinian refugee camp of Shuafat, which straddles the Jerusalem municipal boundary, will remain on the Israeli side of the barrier. It will be encircled by a separate fence, with a crossing into the city.
The bustling streets of Shuafat -- sandwiched between two Jewish neighborhoods -- were buzzing with speculation Monday about the planned fence.
"Jerusalem is considered to this camp like the heart to the body," said Mohammed Omar, a 50-year-old teacher in Shuafat. "All their (residents) activities are in Jerusalem."
According to the United Nations, 11,250 people live in the camp, a maze of narrow, dusty streets and densely packed gray concrete buildings. Israeli officials said the camp has been used as a launching point by Palestinian attackers, and the fence is needed for security purposes.
In Bethlehem, the barrier will cut off Rachel's Tomb, a Jewish shrine, from the rest of the city. Imposing concrete slabs already have virtually cut off Bethlehem from Jerusalem.
Bethlehem's key tourist industry has been devastated by four years of violence. Nasser Salama, a laborer who works in Jerusalem, fears the barrier will cause more hardship.
"There's no work in Bethlehem. We won't be able to buy food," he said.
Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat that this could destroy peace efforts. "This prejudges and prejudices the outcome of permanent status negotiations," he said.
In addition to the Palestinian condemnations, the barrier has drawn tough international criticism. Last year, the U.N. General Assembly passed a resolution against the barrier, and the U.N. world court said in an advisory ruling last year that the barrier is illegal and must be torn down.
In the West Bank city of Ramallah, U.N. Secretary-General Kofi said after a meeting with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas that the United Nations is establishing a register of damages to Palestinian property and claims against Israel resulting from the barrier construction.
As Annan spoke, Palestinian policemen restrained hundreds of anti-barrier demonstrators at the main gate of the government compound. The demonstrators carried signs reading "Bring down the wall," and scuffled with policemen.
In other developments:
* Abbas was heading to Egypt for talks with Palestinian militant groups that he expects to produce a formal cease-fire declaration ending four years of fighting with Israel. An informal truce has been in place since a Feb. 8 summit.
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon cast doubt on the Cairo truce effort. "The cease-fire the Palestinians are working on does not give up the terrorism option and is not a solution, and we cannot agree to that," he said.
* A poll published Monday showed a huge drop in Palestinian support for suicide bombings over the past six months and other indications that the people are weary of four years of bloodshed.
* Israeli and Palestinian Cabinet ministers met to discuss release of Palestinian prisoners. No agreements were announced.
The AP contributed to this report.
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