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Israeli police block the road entering Sderot, in southern Israel, where thousands of anti-disengagement protestors staged a protest against Israel's planned withdrawal from the Jewish settlements of the Gaza Strip yesterday. (AP)
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08/03
Haaretz |
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08/03
Ynetnews |
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| By israelinsider staff and partners August 3, 2005 |
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Last night's anti-pullout rally in Sderot was a huge success, drawing tens of thousands of protestors -- organizers claimed 30-40,000, whereas police estimated around 15,000.
A portion -- consisting of thousands -- of the activists subsequently traveled to Ofakim, according to plan. Overnight, Kedumim Mayor Daniella Weiss and four others were arrested for trying to sneak into Gaza. This morning, settler leaders at Ofakim encouraged youth to follow suit. Meanwhile, thousands of soldiers and police are scrambling to deploy before activists reach the border.
Senior police officials said they expect most of the demonstrators to heed earlier directives against infiltration issued by the leadership of the Yesha Council, but that a few hundred extremists could clash with security forces and try to infiltrate Gush Katif.
Thousands of protesters, many of them children, wearing shirts and ribbons of orange, the color of the protest movement, descended on an open field next to a sports center in the middle of Sderot, and posters lashing the pullout were plastered across the town.
Over the stage hung a sign that said "Mass march to Gush Katif." It was the same sign over the stage at a rally two weeks ago in the nearby town of Netivot. Police and soldiers prevented those protesters from getting anywhere near Gaza, herding them into the small community of Kfar Maimon, where they stayed for three days in the blistering heat before dispersing.
Thousands of Israeli police and soldiers deployed between the protesters and the Gaza Strip early Wednesday, determined to foil any attempt to march on the territory to reinforce its beleaguered settlers.
The march on Gaza, scheduled to begin Wednesday, is the second effort in two weeks by West Bank settlers and their backers to storm into the Gush Katif settlement bloc in southern Gaza.
"Our goal has been stated openly: to go Gush Katif, to our besieged brothers," Gaza settler leader Avner Shimoni told Channel 2 TV. "It is impossible to stop the masses of Israel who have only one goal, to reach Gush Katif and overturn this cruel decree."
Some of the protesters in Sderot said there was really no chance for them to stop the pullout.
"It seems that it is too late," said Alain Bismuth, 40, from the northern city of Haifa. He said he came simply to show that there are many Israelis opposed to the plan.
Others still had hope.
"Everything we do changes things," said Shmuel Lax, 30, of Neve Tsuf.
Despite the settler protests, Israeli military commanders will meet their Palestinian counterparts on Wednesday to continue efforts to coordinate the withdrawal, the Palestinian Interior Ministry said.
The AP contributed to this report.
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