Israeli forces showed how quickly they can empty out a Gaza settlement when they stormed a hotel where extremists were holed up and removed them all in minutes -- an unplanned dress rehearsal for next month's pullout.
The lightning operation on Thursday targeted the most dangerous of the opponents -- West Bank extremists, some with long records of violence, who said they would battle against the Gaza pullout to the death. But they quickly surrendered to the overwhelming numbers of security forces, struggling and shouting as soldiers lifted them from the floor of the hotel dining room and carried them outside.
"You're expelling Jews like the Germans, like the Russians," shouted media-wise West Bank hard-liner Nadia Matter at the soldiers, who ignored her as TV cameras recorded her words.
Israeli Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz called the Jewish extremists "hooligans" and added, "Preparations for disengagement and the disengagement itself will go ahead as planned with no hesitation. This is a test of the nation's authority, and the nation will pass the test with honor." He spoke Thursday at an air force ceremony. The extremists had welded bars on the windows and had supplies of food, water and gasoline, preparing firebombs and nails. But the military blocked reinforcements from arriving by declaring all of Gaza a "closed military zone," banning all civilians except for residents from entering, and the squatters said they decided not to resist.
Early yesterday, the military lifted its order limiting access to Gaza. But it issued a new order limiting the transfer of equipment that might be used in another confrontation.
Settlers and their backers oppose the pullout on several grounds. Despite Sharon's denials, they believe one withdrawal will inevitably be followed by others, and Orthodox Jews, who make up the majority of the most visible opponents, say no Israeli government has the right to relinquish control of parts of the God-given Promised Land.
The military absorbed criticism from local media for delaying the expulsion until a day after some of the extremists clashed with soldiers and Palestinians in a nearby neighborhood. A Palestinian was seriously wounded when a rock hit him in the head, and young Jews threw more rocks at him as he lay unconscious on the ground with an Israeli soldier trying to protect him.
"I'm glad we succeeded in expelling that whole gang from here," said the area military commander, Major General Dan Harel. He said the operation could be a model for the pullout itself, when soldiers and police are to remove 8,500 settlers from all 21 Gaza settlements.
Near Jerusalem, meanwhile, pullout opponents briefly blocked a highway for the second day in a row. Speaking at an economic conference in Jerusalem Thursday evening, Sharon denounced the extremists. "Hooliganism ... is not the way of Judaism," he said. "We will not allow anyone to raise a hand against an Israeli soldier or police officer."
A survey conducted by the Dahaf polling institute showed backing for the Gaza evacuation up to 62 percent from 53 percent at the beginning of the month, largely on account of the confrontations. Opposition to the pullout was down to 31 percent from 38 percent.
DOUBLE-MURDER CASE: The officer told the dispatcher he would check the locations of the callers, but instead headed to a pizzeria, remaining there for about an hour A New Jersey officer has been charged with misconduct after prosecutors said he did not quickly respond to and properly investigate reports of a shooting that turned out to be a double murder, instead allegedly stopping at an ATM and pizzeria. Franklin Township Police Sergeant Kevin Bollaro was the on-duty officer on the evening of Aug. 1, when police received 911 calls reporting gunshots and screaming in Pittstown, about 96km from Manhattan in central New Jersey, Hunterdon County Prosecutor Renee Robeson’s office said. However, rather than responding immediately, prosecutors said GPS data and surveillance video showed Bollaro drove about 3km
Tens of thousands of people on Saturday took to the streets of Spain’s eastern city of Valencia to mark the first anniversary of floods that killed 229 people and to denounce the handling of the disaster. Demonstrators, many carrying photos of the victims, called on regional government head Carlos Mazon to resign over what they said was the slow response to one of Europe’s deadliest natural disasters in decades. “People are still really angry,” said Rosa Cerros, a 42-year-old government worker who took part with her husband and two young daughters. “Why weren’t people evacuated? Its incomprehensible,” she said. Mazon’s
‘MOTHER’ OF THAILAND: In her glamorous heyday in the 1960s, former Thai queen Sirikit mingled with US presidents and superstars such as Elvis Presley The year-long funeral ceremony of former Thai queen Sirikit started yesterday, with grieving royalists set to salute the procession bringing her body to lie in state at Bangkok’s Grand Palace. Members of the royal family are venerated in Thailand, treated by many as semi-divine figures, and lavished with glowing media coverage and gold-adorned portraits hanging in public spaces and private homes nationwide. Sirikit, the mother of Thai King Vajiralongkorn and widow of the nation’s longest-reigning monarch, died late on Friday at the age of 93. Black-and-white tributes to the royal matriarch are being beamed onto towering digital advertizing billboards, on
POWER ABUSE WORRY: Some people warned that the broad language of the treaty could lead to overreach by authorities and enable the repression of government critics Countries signed their first UN treaty targeting cybercrime in Hanoi yesterday, despite opposition from an unlikely band of tech companies and rights groups warning of expanded state surveillance. The new global legal framework aims to bolster international cooperation to fight digital crimes, from child pornography to transnational cyberscams and money laundering. More than 60 countries signed the declaration, which means it would go into force once ratified by those states. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres described the signing as an “important milestone,” and that it was “only the beginning.” “Every day, sophisticated scams destroy families, steal migrants and drain billions of dollars from our economy...
RSS