Palestinian and Israeli officials agreed on a key issue in coordination of Israel's pullout from Gaza -- what to do with the rubble of the 21 Jewish settlements to be destroyed after Israel's withdrawal, Israel's Defense Ministry said.
The accord came late on Tuesday. Israel would tear down parts of the buildings and take in dangerous rubble, like asbestos. The Palestinians would finish the job, with money provided by Israel and administered by the World Bank, and use some of the rubble for construction of a seaport. The pullout begins next week.
Israeli Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz and Palestinian Cabinet minister Mohammed Dahlan reached the accord, with international envoy James Wolfensohn participating.
Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas was to decide yesterday whether he accepts the arrangement, and Wolfensohn, who is American, is to report to US President George W. Bush.
Solution of the rubble issue is as much symbolic as practical. The two sides have been haggling over coordination issues for most of the year, after Prime Minister Ariel Sharon altered his unilateral approach with the death of his arch-enemy Yasser Arafat on Nov. 11.
Still to be concluded, with a week to go before the pullout begins, are issues including control of border crossings. Progress was made on security arrangements at the crossings, the Israelis said.
On Tuesday, Abbas warned that attacks by Palestinians during Israel's upcoming pullout from Gaza would harm Palestinian chances for independence, but he also promised to hold long-delayed parliamentary elections in January as a gesture to the militants.
Abbas told his parliament that Palestinian behavior will determine how the world perceives their ability to run their own affairs. Violent groups like Hamas want to show they are driving the Israelis out by force, but Abbas wants a smooth handover.
Abbas did not set an exact date in January for elections. Hamas, which is entering candidates for the first time, has harshly criticized Abbas' decision to postpone the vote, originally set for July 17.
Abbas was meeting Hamas leaders late on Tuesday to discuss the new election schedule. Hamas is expected to do well against Abbas' Fatah party after scoring impressive victories in three rounds of local elections in recent months.
Abbas' first concern in a comprehensive speech to a session of parliament in Gaza City on Tuesday was easing the way for Israel to exit Gaza. Israel plans to remove all 21 settlements, with about 8,500 residents, beginning Aug. 15, and has warned that if there are Palestinian attacks, it will hit back hard.
"There is a requirement to ensure the withdrawal takes place in a civilized manner," Abbas said. "We will be able to show the world we deserve independence and freedom."
Abbas warned against looting after the withdrawal, saying the land on which the settlements were built belongs to all Palestinians.
He also cautioned against excessive celebrations because the pullout falls far short of the Palestinian goal of full independence.
"The Israelis are still occupying our land. The road is still long ahead," he said.
He used especially tough language against militants, who have continued to fire rockets and carry out other attacks despite a six-month ceasefire with Israel.
"The presence of the gunmen in the streets must end. The Palestinian Authority must be the only authority," he said. "I don't think any country accepts more than one authority, more than one gun."
In Israeli politics, a day after Finance Minister Benjamin Netanyahu quit in protest over the Gaza pullout, a poll showed he would trounce Sharon in a Likud Party primary election for party leader.
The poll by the Haaretz daily, published Tuesday on its Web site, showed Netanyahu with 47.2 percent and Sharon with 33.2 percent support among registered Likud voters -- the ones eligible to take part in a primary election.
The Dialog poll questioned 526 people representing the 152,000 registered Likud voters. The margin of error was less than 4.27 percent, Haaretz said.
A fire caused by a burst gas pipe yesterday spread to several homes and sent a fireball soaring into the sky outside Malaysia’s largest city, injuring more than 100 people. The towering inferno near a gas station in Putra Heights outside Kuala Lumpur was visible for kilometers and lasted for several hours. It happened during a public holiday as Muslims, who are the majority in Malaysia, celebrate the second day of Eid al-Fitr. National oil company Petronas said the fire started at one of its gas pipelines at 8:10am and the affected pipeline was later isolated. Disaster management officials said shutting the
DITCH TACTICS: Kenyan officers were on their way to rescue Haitian police stuck in a ditch suspected to have been deliberately dug by Haitian gang members A Kenyan policeman deployed in Haiti has gone missing after violent gangs attacked a group of officers on a rescue mission, a UN-backed multinational security mission said in a statement yesterday. The Kenyan officers on Tuesday were on their way to rescue Haitian police stuck in a ditch “suspected to have been deliberately dug by gangs,” the statement said, adding that “specialized teams have been deployed” to search for the missing officer. Local media outlets in Haiti reported that the officer had been killed and videos of a lifeless man clothed in Kenyan uniform were shared on social media. Gang violence has left
US Vice President J.D. Vance on Friday accused Denmark of not having done enough to protect Greenland, when he visited the strategically placed and resource-rich Danish territory coveted by US President Donald Trump. Vance made his comment during a trip to the Pituffik Space Base in northwestern Greenland, a visit viewed by Copenhagen and Nuuk as a provocation. “Our message to Denmark is very simple: You have not done a good job by the people of Greenland,” Vance told a news conference. “You have under-invested in the people of Greenland, and you have under-invested in the security architecture of this
Japan unveiled a plan on Thursday to evacuate around 120,000 residents and tourists from its southern islets near Taiwan within six days in the event of an “emergency”. The plan was put together as “the security situation surrounding our nation grows severe” and with an “emergency” in mind, the government’s crisis management office said. Exactly what that emergency might be was left unspecified in the plan but it envisages the evacuation of around 120,000 people in five Japanese islets close to Taiwan. China claims Taiwan as part of its territory and has stepped up military pressure in recent years, including
RSS