Gaza settlement era ends with Netzarim evacuation
Residents of the last Gaza settlement bid an emotional farewell to their homes this afternoon, before boarding the buses that took them out of Netzarim, HA'ARETZ reported. This event marked the end of Israel's settlement enterprise in area of land between Israel, Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea. A short time later, the Israel Defense Forces declared that the evacuation of the Gaza settlements was complete.
"Except for two families now in Netzarim, and who will be evacuated imminently, we have today completed the evacuation of the Israeli presence in the Gaza Strip," Major General Dan Harel, told reporters at the settlement.
The embattled and isolated settlement was the target of countless Palestinian terror attacks and the enclave which many had believed would be dismantled before all others.
The residents of the settlement had gathered for a final prayer service before leaving the enclave. In the synagogue, residents prayed together with the soldiers who guarded them over the years, before leaving with the Torah scrolls cradled in the arms of Netzarim old-timers. The settlers then carried the synagogue's menorah, earlier removed from the roof, through the streets of Netzarim on their shoulders.
"We are leaving against our will, but we are not going with our heads bowed," said Rabbi Tzion Tzion-Tawil. "The saplings which are being uprooted here, we will replant throughout the country until we make our return to Netzarim."
Some of the settlers then boarded the buses for their departure without resistance, while clashes broke out between some of the settlers and police and soldiers, and a policewoman sustained light injuries.
Evacuation of northern Samaria be completed by Tuesday
The evacuation of northern Samaria will be completed on Tuesday, Police Chief Insp.-Gen. Moshe Karadi told reporters on a tour of the area around the northern Samaria settlement of Sa-Nur, THE JERUSALEM POST reported. The army has dug ditches around Sa-Nur and Homesh to prevent infiltrators from reaching the settlements as thousands of troops have already been deployed in the Sa-Nur area for tomorrow's evacuation and also to deal with any Palestinian initiated violence. "This is a more complicated evacuation than in Gush Katif," Karadi explained, "but we will do it." He added that police "will continue to speak with residents here, but not with those who infiltrated the settlement." Referring to possible violence during the evacuation, Karadi stressed, "The scripts are not written by us but by the settlers."
OC Central Command Yair Naveh said that after the evacuation of the settlements the area would remain under Israeli security control that is area C. Naveh noted that while all the settlers in the communities had handed over their IDF issued weapons and personal weapons, he could not rule out the possibility that weapons remained inside Sa-Nur sand Homesh. He also said that the security establishment has received a number of terror threats, some of them concrete, and noted that the army is also prepared to deal with any Palestinian initiated violence. While expressing hope that the residents in both settlements would ensure that their protests remained within the limitations of the law, any violence that oversteps the boundaries would be dealt with immediately. "We will allow a non-violent protest and share the evacuees' pain, but we cannot afford to allow violence to ensue," Naveh said.
Abbas to Sharon: We are your partners
Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas phoned Prime Minister Ariel Sharon to congratulate him on the completion of the Gaza disengagement, YNET reported. The two leaders agreed to meet soon. "We are your partners for peace," Abbas told the prime minister during the conversation, adding that he hopes the pullout will mark a new chapter in relations between the nations. The leaders spoke last on June 21 during a meeting that was described at the time as "difficult and unsuccessful." Meanwhile, U.S. President George W. Bush said today the U.S. would work with Abbas' government to smother extremist groups - something Israel has made a precondition for progress on the internationally drafted peace plan. Bush also said the U.S. remained "fully committed to defending the security and well-being of our ally, Israel", and called for an end to all forms of terrorism in the region. "We'll continue working for the day when the map of the Middle East shows two democratic states, Israel and Palestine, living side-by-side in peace and security," the president said.
Economic & High-Tech Briefs
* IBM has beaten Electronic Data Systems to win a five-year $11 million Ministry of Construction and Housing outsourcing contract, GLOBES reported. ministry's 30 The contract has a five-year extension option for same amount. The Ministry of Housing is the largest ministry to fully outsource all its computer operations. other IBM's contract includes upgrading the Ministry of Housing's computer system and servers, approximately 1,000 work stations, printers, and communications equipment. After the upgrade, IBM will operate and maintain the ministry's computer infrastructure.
* Standard & Poor's Ratings Services maintained Israel's foreign currency rating at A-/Stable, HA'ARETZ reported. The company said it expected fiscal and economic reform in Israel "to remain on track despite recent political turbulence" involving the resignation of former finance minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the imminent disengagement from Gaza. Maintaining the path of fiscal consolidation and structural reform is crucial for the sovereign credit ratings on Israel that remain constrained by the comparatively weak financial position of the government, with a debt burden well above 100 percent of GDP and budget deficits that peaked at 5.5 percent of GDP only two years ago, S&P announced.
[Today's Israel Line was prepared by by Hili Sharon at the Consulate General of Israel in New York.]