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A new recruit for the Palestinian Authority security forces leaps over a burning tyre, during a training exercise, in the West Bank town of Tulkarem
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| By Associated Press March 22, 2005 |
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| AP |
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Israelis and Palestinians reached a deal on Monday about handing over security control of the West Bank town of Tulkarem -- a boost for a fledgling peace process that has repeatedly bogged down over security issues.
The handover could also help Palestinian officials carry out a new directive restricting weapons in the hands of militants, who insist they'll comply only if Israel withdraws from West Bank towns.
Tulkarem is the second of five towns to be handed back to Palestinian security as part of an agreement to end four years of bloodshed announced at a summit meeting in Egypt on Feb. 8 by Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas and Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, and reinforced last week by truce declarations from Palestinian militant groups.
In the six weeks since the summit, violence has dropped considerably, but not all confidence-building measures -- transfer of the towns and release of additional Palestinian prisoners -- have been implemented, renewing suspicions.
Adding to Palestinian anger, Israeli officials confirmed Monday that the government has approved construction of 3,500 new housing units in and around the West Bank's largest settlement, Maale Adumim near Jerusalem, in violation of the U.S.-backed "road map" peace plan.
Israeli and Palestinian security officers hammered out a compromise over the town of Tulkarem in two meetings on Monday.
The senior Israeli commander, Col. Tamir Hayman, told The Associated Press that Palestinian police would be in control of the area as of Monday evening, and the main roadblock in front of Tulkarem would be dismantled Tuesday morning, completing the process.
After the agreement was announced, Palestinians celebrated in Tulkarem, with masked gunmen firing weapons in the air. Palestinian police watched without taking action.
The main sticking point of talks Monday were two villages north of Tulkarem, where Israel says the Islamic Jihad cell responsible for a Feb. 25 suicide bombing that killed five Israelis in Tel Aviv operates. Israeli officials said Israel would remain in control of the two villages for now.
The officials said contacts would continue over the villages, with the intent of handing them over later.
"We agreed, we signed. This is good for Israel and for the Palestinians," Hayman told reporters.
The handover process got off to a limping start when talks over the isolated oasis town of Jericho bogged down for weeks over similar issues: which roadblocks Israel would remove and how much territory the Palestinians would receive.
Difficulties over the first two towns seemed to spell trouble ahead for the others. Next in line is Qalqiliya, which like Tulkarem is in a sensitive position on the line between Israel and the West Bank. Bethlehem, just 5 kilometers (3 miles) from Jerusalem, is next, to be followed by Ramallah, the seat of the Palestinian government.
Israel could raise security concerns at each stage, dragging out the process. Israel points to more than four years of Palestinian attacks, including more than 100 suicide bombings, explaining its focus on security. Palestinians say the Israeli reservations amount to bad faith.
Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qureia said Israel already agreed to hand over the five towns and the areas around them at the Feb. 8 summit. Speaking before the Tulkarem agreement, Qureia angrily accused Israel of "renegotiating issues that are already agreed upon."
Adding to Palestinian suspicions was confirmation from Israeli officials on Monday that Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz has approved construction of 3,500 more housing units in and around Maale Adumim, the largest Jewish settlement in the West Bank, 5 kilometers (3 miles) east of Jerusalem.
"It's a kind of terror against the peace process and against the Palestinian people," Qureia said.
The road map, which envisions the creation of a Palestinian state, requires Israel to freeze settlement activity in the West Bank. It also requires the Palestinians to dismantle militant groups.
The new Palestinian order to militants appeared to be a first step toward disarming gunmen.
Senior Palestinian security officials, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the Interior Ministry has distributed a letter outlining weapons restrictions to hundreds of militants in the West Bank.
The restrictions limit militants to a single weapon and bar them from loading the weapons or carrying them in public, the official said. A copy of the letter was obtained by The Associated Press.
Israel welcomed the move, but leaders of the al Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, a militant faction affiliated with Abbas' Fatah faction, said they would not sign the pledge until Israel completes its withdrawal from the five West Bank towns.
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