The IDF said in a statement Thursday that it took down 10 manned roadblocks near the West Bank towns of Nablus, Tulkarem and Qalqiliya to ease restrictions on the movement of Palestinians, in keeping with the commitments Israel
made to US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice during her visit to
the region earlier this week. However, none of the points are major crossings.
| US Pressure |
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| Rice calls on Israel to halt settlement expansion / Reuters |
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In joint press conference with Palestinian President Abbas in Amman, US secretary of state says 'settlement activity is not consistent with Road Map obligations'. Israeli-Palestinian talks on right track, she adds |
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Israel promised Rice it would remove 50 roadblocks to ease restrictions on Palestinians. Israel says the obstacles are needed to keep Palestinian assailants out, but the Jewish state also wants to boost moderate Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas by
easing restrictions on his people, as peace negotiations proceed.
"There is no doubt that the removal of the roadblocks will make it easier on terrorists to carry out attacks and then escape back to the territories, but the decision was made at government level," an Israeli security official told Ynet.
A Palestinian security official refuted the report, saying "not one roadblock has been removed. Maybe the IDF removed roadblocks in its own bases, but not in the Palestinian Authority and certainly not in the West Bank."
On Monday, Palestinian Foreign Minister Riad Malki said Israel removed two
checkpoints in Jericho in addition to evacuating the Rimonim checkpoint near Ramallah. Yesha leaders claimed that the IDF's plan to remove the Modiin roadblock in the Binyamin area, which is in the vicinity of Jerusalem, was canceled after settlers said they would man the roadblock themselves if needed.
The settlers said the Modiin roadblock was crucial, adding that in the past an Israeli woman was killed because it had been removed.
Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad said recently that Israel was not living up to its commitment to freeze settlement construction and ease Palestinian movement in the West Bank.
A report published last year by Peace Now stated that there are 93 manned checkpoints throughout the West Bank, in addition to 467 roadblocks, such as gates, ditches and sand mounds.
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