GAZA CITY, 24 August 2005 — Israel yesterday wrapped up its planned evacuation of 25 Jewish settlements, including Sanur and nearby Homesh in the West Bank. The withdrawal from all 21 settlements in the Gaza Strip and four in the West Bank represents the first time Israel has abandoned territory the Palestinians claim for their future state.
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon forged ahead with the plan against fierce opposition, reasoning it would reduce friction with the Palestinians, and solidify Israel’s grip on West Bank settlement blocs where most of the 240,000 Jewish settlers live.
While the security forces needed everything from bulldozers and cranes to bolt-cutters to evict the diehards from Sanur and Homesh, the violent resistance that had been predicted failed to materialize.
The Israeli flag was set alight by protesters holed up in the settlements to express their disgust at Sharon who was for years seen as their guiding light but became the first leader to oversee the evacuation of Israeli citizens from Palestinian territory after a 38-year occupation.
While the northern West Bank evacuations represent only a tiny fraction of the 120 settlements that dot the territory captured by Israel from Jordan in 1967, the unprecedented operation has raised international hopes of a genuine breakthrough in the moribund peace process after five years of bloodshed.
Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas telephoned Israeli President Moshe Katsav to congratulate him on the completion of the Gaza pullout while US President George W. Bush praised Sharon for his “courage”.
Bush called the disengagement plan “a courageous decision” that has “changed the dynamics on the ground and has provided hope for the Palestinian people” and improved the prospects for the so-called road map to peace.
“We want to get back to the road map. I understand that in order for this process to go forward, there must be confidence,” on the Palestinian side, that their government will function, and, on the Israeli side, that they will be secure when a future Palestinian state emerges, the president told reporters.
Calling this a “very hopeful period,” Bush said the world must “stay focused on Gaza and helping the Gaza economy get going, helping rebuild the settlements for the people of Gaza.
“My vision and my hope is that one day we’ll see two states — two democratic states — living side by side in peace,” he said.
Sharon, when in the opposition, had urged settlers to “seize the hills”. But the prime minister now argues it is unrealistic to expect such isolated settlements as Sanur and Homesh, which lie close to the West Bank city of Jenin, can remain part of Israel in any final status agreement.
Chief of Staff Gen. Dan Halutz said the demolition of all the settlement houses in Gaza would be completed within the next 10 days. “We will then need an additional two weeks to dismantle all the military installations” in Gaza, he added.
— Additional input from agencies
