RAMALLAH: Israeli forces canceled a planned evacuation of an illegal settlement outpost near the West Bank city of Ramallah after a throng of settlers who learned of the plan gathered at the site before dawn yesterday.
Israeli security sources said that a considerable number of security forces had amassed to evacuate the outpost of Yad Yair, on the western outskirts of Ramallah.
The sources added that senior Israeli officials have held contacts with settler leaders in an effort to coordinate an agreed upon relocation of the YAD Yair (which was named after Yair Mendelson, a settler from Dolev settlement who was killed by Palestinians during the first intifada) closer to Dolev between the Palestinian villages of Al-Janyeh and Ein Qiniya.
Hundreds of settlers from nearby settlements, including Dolev, Talmon, Nahliel, Niryah, and Harsha, gathered late Tuesday night at the outpost after residents received information that the army and the police were about to launch an evacuation. Settlers say the security forces had deployed a significant number of personnel as well as equipment used for evacuation.
In another development, Israel is examining the possibility of expanding the jurisdiction of the Palestinian Authority’s security forces to include West Bank city of Hebron, following a request made by the Palestinian Authority (PA), a report said yesterday.
The Israeli daily Yediot Ahronot said that the proposal stems from Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad’s concern that Hamas will seize control of the city by taking advantage of the unrest pervading the streets as Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ term comes to an end in January 2009.
The report said that the Palestinian request was recently communicated through discreet channels to senior Israeli diplomatic figures, who did not outright reject the idea.However, they conditioned the implementation of the plan on the approval of the defense establishment. The proposal was discussed in Fayyad’s meetings with Israeli officials and the US special envoy for Middle East Security Gen. James Jones.
Fayyad said he believes the expansion of the PA’s authority would strengthen the resolve and motivation of the Palestinian street to maintain the calm. Allowing PA troops to operate in Hebron, Fayyad said, would weaken Hamas’ influence there and prevent the deterioration of the security situation.
