Israeli troops pushed through burning barricades and dragged screaming protesters from a settlement synagogue yesterday in an assault on one of the last pockets of resistance to evacuation from the Gaza Strip.
Diehard Jewish settlers took to rooftops in the tiny Gadid enclave shouting "Nazis" as security forces swept in, hours after clearing Gaza's main anti-pullout strongholds to break the back of opposition to ending 38 years of occupation.
With the latest opinion poll confirming solid support among the Israeli public for the first removal of settlements from land Palestinians want for a state, troops rushed to wrap up their toughest tasks before the start of the Jewish Sabbath at sunset.
Marching past flaming cars, unarmed riot troops surrounded Gadid's synagogue and forced their way in as 90 protesters, mostly radical youths who had locked themselves inside, lay on the floor. Some prayed. Others cried or shouted abuse.
In what has become a familiar scene this week, police wrestled them out one by one and carried them to waiting buses -- as they had in raids on two other enclaves on Thursday.
"This is a desecration of everything that is sacred to Jews," said Boaz Puterel, 30.
More than 80 percent of Gaza's 8,500 settlers have already been evacuated under Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's "disengagement plan," and officials said they were far ahead of schedule.
Many of Gadid's 350 residents had already left before troops moved in, but a few families and dozens of protesters defiantly remained. Columns of smoke rose from piles of burning tires and debris as soldiers went door to door ordering people out. Six hours after storming in, the army declared Gadid empty.
A new poll showed 59 percent support it. Political analysts say the Gaza evacuation could also reduce foreign pressure to give up bigger settlements in the West Bank, land the Palestinians also want.
With 17 of Gaza's 21 enclaves clear of settlers, troops plan to begin evacuating two small West Bank settlements on Tuesday in a 24-hour operation, a military official said.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the plans are not definite, said yesterday the army's goal is to complete an evacuation from the Gaza Strip by next Tuesday and then move on to the four West Bank communities, but not before Wednesday.
RSS