RAMALLAH, 21 April 2005 — As a sign of Israeli military’s first concrete step toward a planned pullout this summer, flatbed trucks rumbled out of the Gaza Strip yesterday carrying office furniture, computers and uniforms out of an army base.
With Israel set to withdraw all troops and settlements from Gaza in just three months, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon warned that he expects Palestinians to loot abandoned sites immediately after the soldiers leave. The comment astonished Palestinian leaders, who say chaos is not inevitable.
The army trucks began emptying out the base of the Southern Brigade in Neve Dekalim, the largest Jewish settlement in Gaza. About 20 containers were removed yesterday, and more are expected to be shipped out in the coming days, the army said.
Military officials said no weapons were included in the shipment, and the base won’t be dismantled until the end of the operation. “We are already preparing, so everything won’t be last minute during the planned withdrawal,” said one official, speaking on condition of anonymity under military rules.
However, the date of the withdrawal remained up in the air yesterday as the government considered delaying the start by three weeks, from July 25 to Aug. 15. A decision is expected this week.
The delay was proposed in order to avoid carrying out the pullout during the annual period of mourning observant Jews mark for the destruction of the biblical Temples, leading up to the fast day on Aug. 14.
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz have sent mixed signals on whether they favor postponing the operation. Both men have said they want to respect the feelings of the settlers, most of whom are observant Jews. At the same time, they have said changing the timeline would disrupt preparations.
Israel has so far prepared the withdrawal unilaterally, but has come under pressure to coordinate the operation with the Palestinians, in part to ensure an orderly transfer of the 21 Jewish settlements in Gaza.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said in a published interview yesterday that he is willing to coordinate the withdrawal with Israel, and that he expects meetings to start next week. Mofaz is to meet Palestinian official Mohammed Dahlan today to begin coordinating the pullout, Israeli officials said.
Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat was scheduled to meet today with a top Sharon aide, Dov Weisglass, to deal with the handover. Also, Palestinian Prime Minister Ahmed Qorei was to meet Israeli Vice Premier Shimon Peres today to discuss economic cooperation, Peres said.
Abbas said he was not concerned by a possible delay in the pullout. “The Gaza withdrawal is an Israeli decision that was not coordinated with us,” he told the Israeli daily Haaretz. “They originally decided to conduct in July, and now they are talking about August or later, and it’s their business when it starts.”
— With input from agencies
