Police trying to clear a path for moving trucks scuffled yesterday with hundreds of Gaza pullout opponents, who threw empty water bottles and torched a garbage container in the worst violence since the start of the withdrawal. At least 50 people were detained in Gaza's largest settlement.
The confrontation in Neve Dekalim erupted just hours ahead of a midnight deadline for all Jewish settlers to leave the Gaza Strip voluntarily or face forcible removal. Officials said they were hopeful at least half the settlers would leave before the deadline, but warned of tough action against anyone who resists.
After failing to enter Neve Dekalim on Monday, police burst into the community early yesterday and dismantled the main entrance gate to clear the way for some 120 moving trucks to enter. Officers cut the electric gate with a saw, then dragged the metal barrier away and threw it on the side of a road.
Within hours, a large crowd of predominantly young people blocked the entrance to Neve Dekalim and refused to let the trucks enter. When security forces tried to push back the crowd, scuffles erupted.
Protesters set fire to a garbage container, and splattered white paint in the road. Protesters, who wore the orange color of pullout opponents, pelted police with plastic water bottles while a water cannon put out the fire. Several people had bloody faces, and four officers were hurt.
"We will do all we can to protect ourselves against the wolves," said Yehuda Glick, a protest leader who urged security forces to disobey orders. "How can you do this to another Jew?"
The army said 50 people were detained and expelled from Gaza, and police were seen carrying off flailing protesters grabbing them by their arms and legs. After several hours, traffic remained at a standstill.
As the standoff continued, a family of settlers tried to leave Neve Dekalim in a jeep carrying four mattresses on the roof and pulling a small trailer. A young girl inside was crying as the crowd prevented the vehicle from moving.
The three-week operation to evacuate Gaza began Monday with the distribution of eviction notices to settlers. Israel plans to remove all 21 settlements from Gaza and four from the West Bank. It is the first time Israel has removed veteran settlements from either area, which are claimed by the Palestinians for a future, independent state.
By midday yesterday, three Gaza settlements and two West Bank communities were empty, while five other Gaza settlements were rapidly thinning out, Israeli media said. But people in several communities appeared to be digging in for a fight.
"We cannot hold Gaza for good," Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said.
"More than a million Palestinians live there, doubling their numbers every generation."
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