Jericho handover completed
Transfer was delayed when IDF refused to sign legal document presented by the Palestinians at the last moment; minor changes were made, the IDF signed, and the handover became official
JERICHO - Now it’s official: Israel handed over security control of the West Bank city of Jericho to the Palestinian Authority Wednesday.
The transfer was delayed for a while when the Palestinians demanded that the IDF sign a legal document that stated that control over Jericho has been transferred to them.
After a few minor changes were made in the document, the IDF signed it, and the transfer was official.
IDF Jordan Valley Division Commander Colonel Moty Almoz and his Palestinian counterpart met Tuesday and reached an agreement on the transfer.
An initial agreement on the handover of Jericho to the Palestinians has been reached Monday in a meeting between Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz and Palestinian Interior Minister Nasser Yusuf.
The two officials met for over two hours after earlier talks on the matter between military officials failed to finalize an agreement.
Mofaz and Yusuf also agreed on the transfer of two more West Bank cities to the Palestinians in the coming weeks. Tul Karm is slated to be handed over next week, followed by Qalqiliya.
During Monday’s session, Mofaz refused to budge on Israeli security demands. As a result, Highway 90 and a contentious Jericho roadblock would remain under Israeli control.
Early Wednesday an Israeli was mildly injured in a shooting attack in Hebron.
He said Palestinians opened fire at him, and the IDF confirmed the attack was nationalistically motivated.
Popular Front terrorists to remain in jail
Meanwhile, Yusuf has pledged to disarm 20 wanted terror suspects who reside in Jericho. The two officials also agreed to meet again in about a month, so that Israel can consider additional Palestinian requests.
The possible release of Popular Front terrorists jailed in Jericho was also discussed in the meeting, but Mofaz refused to commit to their release at this time.
The handover of Jericho is expected to mark the beginning of a particularly sensitive “test period,” where security officials closely examine actions undertaken by Palestinian security authorities.
The Palestinians have often argued they would not be able to disarm terrorists because Israel maintained security responsibility over Palestinian areas. However, with the handover of Jericho, Israel will hold the Palestinians fully responsible for any incidents in the town.
No free cease-fire
Meanwhile in Cairo, the first round of meetings of the Palestinian factions has concluded.
During the deliberations, Egyptian Intelligence Chief Omar Suleiman emphasized the need to reach a cease-fire (Hudna) ahead of the implementation of Israel’s disengagement plan.
Palestinian Authority Chairman Mahmoud Abbas said the calm announced by the Palestinian factions brought about the increased international community support of the Palestinian demands and also set off serious negotiations with Israel regarding the pullout from Palestinian towns and the Palestinian prisoners.
However, almost all the 13 factions that attended the meetings, headed by Hamas and Islamic Jihad, reiterated their stance whereby they would not offer Israel a cease-fire “for free.”
- Hanan Greenberg and Ali Waked also contributed to the article
