Prime Minister Ehud Olmert
ordered a more tolerant treatment of Palestinian civilians crossing army-controlled checkpoints during a tour of the West Bank on Tuesday.
"We need to make it easier as much as possible at crossings for merchandize and for Palestinian pedestrians," Olmert asked Israel Defense Forces Central Command Chief Maj.-Gen. Yair Naveh.
Olmert was asked about a report
in Haaretz on Tuesday that Israeli and Syrian officials had agreed on a peace draft in secret talks held between 2004 and 2006.
Prime Minister Ehud Olmert (Photo: Gilad Kwalershik)
"It never happened … I knew nothing and no one in the government knows. No one of the government officials was involved in this. That's a private initiative by a man who spoke with himself, and from what I've been reading his conversation partner was a weird figure from the US," he said.
Olmert was also accompanied by Deputy Chief of Staff Maj.-Gen. Moshe Kaplinsky and his tour included a stop at the Shaar Ephraim crossing through which goods from Nablus, Tul Karem and Qalqilya as well as Palestinian workers enter Israel.
"How do we create an image in the consciousness of the Palestinians that the crossing is friendly?" he asked.
Officers told Olmert that the IDF has been in contact with Palestinian officials and is dispersing flyers to Palestinian passengers part of its efforts to promote the easing of restrictions at crossings.
"Supposedly, the negative element which is causing a low number of goods shipments is tax payments, but the second thing is the speed of passing through the checkpoints, the treatment and the checks. The more tolerant the treatment, the price of paying taxes will be a price that is worthy for them to pay," Olmert said in response.
The prime minister was told that the average time to check a truck loaded with goods is 3/4 of an hour with the IDF aiming at reducing that time to half an hour, falling short of Olmert's 15 minutes time limit.
Olmert said he will ask the Tax Authority to extend working hours by two hours daily.
Between 2,000 and 2,500 Palestinians go through the Ephraim crossing each day, with the first passengers arriving at 2 am to ensure they make it to their workplace in Israel by 6 am.
Olmert urged officers to ease inspection procedures at the crossing, noting that, "The Palestinians' quality of life will influence the way they will be our neighbors and this will in turn influence defense expenditures."
Israel removed 15 checkpoints spread between cities and villages in the West Bank where Palestinians had to wait long hours each day and opened 44 out of 161 blocked roads as a gesture of good will towards President Mahmoud Abbas.
Following talks with Abbas last month, Olmert said Israel will take a series of steps to improve the quality of life of the Palestinians in an attempt to boost Abbas in the standoff with the governing Hamas party.
"The security and defense establishments are doing a great effort to ease the movement restrictions in Judea and Samaria and by doing so is contributing a great deal to the residents' lives," Olmert said.
Olmert said he could see the results of Israel's steps on the ground as he was shown that waiting lines at checkpoints have dwindled.
He said that this series of good will gestures is but the beginning, adding that more steps will be taken to improve the lives of the Palestinian population.
Sharon Roffe-Ofir contributed to this report
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