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An IDF soldier watches a Palestinian pass a checkpoint near Ramallah. (AP)
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| By israelinsider staff and partners October 19, 2005 |
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Israel's decision to bar Palestinians from major roads in Judea and Samaria following a deadly shooting attack was part of a broader plan to completely separate Israelis and Palestinians over the next few years, according to an Israeli newspaper report Wednesday.
The driving restrictions were intended as the next step in Israel's "disengagement" plan, which began with its pullout from the Gaza Strip last month and its construction of a separation barrier in Judea and Samaria, or the "West Bank", the Maariv newspaper reported. The barrier, which snakes into the "West Bank", includes many Jewish communities on the Israeli side.
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's spokesman Asaf Shariv declined to comment on the Maariv report. But he said he expected the traffic separation to be only temporary, "not something that will last."
Palestinian officials condemned the reported plan.
"If the Israeli government implements this plan, it will be an official declaration of the introduction of a new apartheid system in the West Bank. It will be worse than in South Africa," Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat said.
Palestinians had been banned from driving on the main roads in Judea and Samaria during much of the past five years of violence because of terror threats and acts of violence, but were allowed back as tensions eased in recent months.
After three Israeli pedestrians were murdered in cold blood, killed in a drive-by shooting Sunday, Israel immediately re-imposed the restrictions, and Palestinian drivers use the use back roads now.
The United States criticized the travel restrictions and urged Israel to work to ease the plight of the Palestinians, despite their record for violence and terror when restrictions are eased.
Israeli officials said earlier this week that the road restrictions were intended to be permanent. Maariv reported Wednesday that the restrictions had been planned for several months under an operation called "All Flowing" that was sped up because of the attack.
Military commanders in the region were expected to have lists of the road divisions next week, but Maariv reported that many roads earmarked for Palestinians were not yet paved. Bridges and tunnels were also to be built at places where Israeli and Palestinian roads meet.
The restrictions were part of a plan that would eventually lead to a full separation between Palestinians and Israelis by 2008, which would include preventing Palestinians from working in Israel, Maariv reported.
Also Wednesday, Palestinian officials said they would open the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt over the weekend to allow hundreds of Palestinians to return home from the Hajj pilgrimage to Mecca, without Israeli permission.
Other humanitarian cases will also be allowed to pass, said Brig. Gen. Salim Abu Safia, head of the border authority.
Israel shut the crossing when it pulled out of Gaza last month and has yet to agree to allow it to be reopened. The crossing, Gaza's main outlet to the outside world, is considered crucial to the impoverished territory's economic success in the wake of the withdrawal. The crossing is also a harbor for terrorists and weapons fired against Israeli towns, with a growing Al-Quaida presence.
The Palestinians have said they would only reopen Rafah for good after reaching agreement with Israel on security and customs arrangements. Despite this, they have opened the border repeatedly without cooperating with Israeli security requests.
Israel is concerned about an influx of weapons and terrorists into Gaza -- especially in light of the chaos that followed the pullout, when thousands of Palestinians jumped the border into Egypt. Israel wants to monitor border traffic, at least long-distance via TV monitors. The Palestinians, however, insist on full control with no Israeli presence.
Under a proposal being discussed, European inspectors would be deployed at Rafah and goods would enter Gaza through a new terminal at the Gaza-Egypt-Israel meeting point, under direct Israeli inspection.
Palestinian officials said the border issue needed to be resolved by the end of November when Gazans who took over the greenhouses forced to be abandoned by the Jews will harvest their first crops, 375 acres (152 hectares) of high quality tomatoes, strawberries, peppers and herbs.
"Then we will see if we can export our products to the foreign markets," said Basil Jaber, the Palestinian official responsible for the greenhouses. "We urge the world to help us to find a solution to this problem." The Palestinians intend to sell the produce planted and grown by the Jewish community forced out of their homes during the Israeli "Disengagement Plan" from Gaza in August.
The AP contributed to this report.
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