The IDF created a major traffic hub in Samaria for Palestinian Authority Arabs on Sunday, by removing a major security checkpoint in the area of Shechem.
The opening of the Beit-Iba crossing, located northwest of Shechem, has been operating as a security checkpoint since 2001, according to the IDF, which said it was being removed due to a reduction in terror attacks in the area. The IDF spokesman added that the move was "intended to improve Palestinian movement throughout northern Samaria."
In addition, the IDF plans to remove a roadblock that was placed in the village of Sarra, west of Shechem -- the Kfar-Tzarah checkpoint.
Not a week goes by that they don't catch terrorists with weapons and explosive belts in that area.
The removal of the checkpoints will connect the villages of Kusin and Sarra to Shechem. It will also facilitate traffic flow between Shechem and the PA-controlled cities of Jenin and Tulkarm.
MK Michael Ben-Ari attacked the decision, claiming it threatened the lives of the residents in Judea and Samaria.
"In these areas terrorists have tried to infiltrate and commit terrorist attacks," he explained. Weapons and explosive belts have been seized during searches of PA Arabs who have tried to pass through the checkpoints in the past, preventing many terrorist attacks, he noted.
Gershon Mesika, head of the Shomron Regional Council likewise slammed the move, calling it "total irresponsibility" and the "conscious endangering of human life."
Mesika contended that the Beit-Iba checkpoint was built "only because there was terror in the region. Not a week goes by that they don't catch terrorists with weapons and explosive belts in that area," he underscored.
The army said that in order to ensure the security of the region, a small checkpoint will be placed near the PA village of Deir Sharaf, northwest of Shechem. However, added the IDF in its statement, "vehicles will only be checked at random at the checkpoint."
The army said it would continue to operate "according to the decisions made by the political echelon and in accord with security assessments, in order to further ease the routine life of the Palestinian population of Judea and Samaria, while continuously fighting terror and maintaining the safety of the citizens of the State of Israel."