‘Protesters won’t enter Gush Katif’

TEL AVIV - Anti-pullout protesters planning to move toward Gaza will not be permitted to enter Gush Katif, Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz said Thursday during a visit to the IDF recruitment base.

“This (disengagement) is a historic process. I call on our brothers not to make it hard on the soldiers and officers; settler leaders must call on the demonstrators no to resort to violence,” he said.

Mofaz said he estimates the last IDF troops would withdraw from Gaza toward the end of the year, after all the settlers have been evacuated.

Mofaz reassuring mother of new recruit (Photo: Avi Cohen) 

Regarding the Pulsa Dinura (death curse) ceremony held by right-wing activists that called for Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s death, he said, “These are bad acts that hurt democracy and Israel’s way of life.” 

Mofaz also addressed the new soldiers, saying, “You are being recruited during a controversial period, the period of disengagement. IDF soldiers and Israel Police officers are the watchmen of democracy in our country. It is important to know that the settlers are brothers, not the enemy, and therefore the evacuation must be carried out with compassion.”

“I estimate that the pullout will end and the nation’s unity will remain in tact, with minimum damage done to it,” he said.

'Rubble may be used to build port'

As to the decision to withdraw from the Philadelphi route in south Gaza, Mofaz said, “The decision to leave the route will be submitted to the government within the next few days. We must maintain IDF presence along the route if the Egyptians would really be able to prevent the smuggling of weapons.”

Mofaz told reporters the Defense Ministry would destroy the settler homes following the evacuation, while the Palestinian Authority would be in charge of clearing the rubble.

The rubble may be used as infrastructure for a Palestinian or Egyptian port, he said, adding that a decision on the matter has not been reached as of yet.

Police Chief Moshe Karadi said the planned anti-pullout march to Gush Katif would not be permitted, while Internal Security Minister Gideon Ezra said, “I am all for legitimate protest, but I cannot accept the attempts to weaken the security forces or people who publicly announce they will weaken soldiers and officers.”

“With our current wars against terror and crime, this one is unnecessary,” he said.

Meanwhile, it seems Gaza residents are coming to terms with the disengagement, as Palestinian merchants are negotiating with a number of settlers in Gush Katif regarding the purchase of greenhouses that would remain in the evacuated settlements, the London-based Al-Sharak Al-Oust newspaper reported.

According to the report, the settlers will leave behind 4,500 dunhams (about 1,100 acres) of advanced agricultural greenhouses between Dir el-Balah and Rafah.

The Palestinians who work for the settlers in the greenhouses often serve as middlemen in the negotiations, the report said.

However, the PA announced Wednesday that any agreement signed between Palestinian merchants and settlers would be deemed illegal, adding that property left behind by the settlers would be seized by the Authority.