Despite the grave attacks of yesterday within the Green Line ceasefire lines, the IDF withdrew its forces last night from Bethlehem and Beit Jala, south of Jerusalem. The move is widely assumed to be the result of American pressure. Israeli and Palestinian security representatives, as well as CIA personnel, will meet today to coordinate further measures.
Col. (res.) Moshe Givati, former Commander of the Hevron region, said two months ago on Arutz-7 that the Bethlehem-Beit Jala offensive at the time was insufficient, and that \"the entire area should be taken and cleansed of its weapons in one fell swoop.\" Asked today if he supports last night\'s withdrawal, he responded, \"I feel that it is too early and not a correct move. I do understand, however, that American pressure is being exerted here, and since we receive such large aid from them, we have no choice, but the way I see it, it will be only a temporary withdrawal, because we will certainly have to return, and in a much deeper fashion.\"
Arutz-7\'s Haggai Segal then asked, \"What do you think should be done?\" Givati responded,
\"[Now that even many on the left agree that] the Oslo process has collapsed, we simply have to go in and bring down the PA, collect the weapons that we gave them, and start a new, smarter diplomatic process… We\'ll never reach any agreement with Arafat because he has no interest in reaching an agreement with us, so we have to throw him and his cronies out, and find a leadership with whom we can talk and come to an agreement. Obviously we will have to live with them in the future, but today we have to stop these grave terrorist attacks. Our response of going into and out of the [PA-controlled] cities is leading us nowhere. At this rate, there will be no quiet - not that there was quiet when we controlled these areas, but it was not like it is now. It simply can\'t be that PA policemen will come out of Jenin, pass through all the checkpoints and start shooting in the heart of Hadera - it just cannot be. We need a much more painful surgical solution.\"
Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer appeared before the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee today. He said, \"If the IDF forces hadn\'t been in Area A, 20 Israelis a day would have been killed.\" Meretz MK Zahava Gal\'on attacked him: \"By that logic, we should have stayed there forever.\" Ben-Eliezer continued, \"I hope the Palestinian actions will justify continued withdrawals like the one last night... We would be willing to return [sic] additional areas to those who guarantee to maintain security.\"
In and around Jenin, however, the story is a different one. The IDF began digging a five-kilometer gully around parts of the city, to prevent terrorists from leaving the city and crossing the Green Line. The terrorists who committed the murders in Hadera yesterday came from Jenin.
Ben-Eliezer also told the MKs that the IDF thwarted a major attack in Tel Aviv yesterday, but he did not elaborate.
Col. (res.) Moshe Givati, former Commander of the Hevron region, said two months ago on Arutz-7 that the Bethlehem-Beit Jala offensive at the time was insufficient, and that \"the entire area should be taken and cleansed of its weapons in one fell swoop.\" Asked today if he supports last night\'s withdrawal, he responded, \"I feel that it is too early and not a correct move. I do understand, however, that American pressure is being exerted here, and since we receive such large aid from them, we have no choice, but the way I see it, it will be only a temporary withdrawal, because we will certainly have to return, and in a much deeper fashion.\"
Arutz-7\'s Haggai Segal then asked, \"What do you think should be done?\" Givati responded,
\"[Now that even many on the left agree that] the Oslo process has collapsed, we simply have to go in and bring down the PA, collect the weapons that we gave them, and start a new, smarter diplomatic process… We\'ll never reach any agreement with Arafat because he has no interest in reaching an agreement with us, so we have to throw him and his cronies out, and find a leadership with whom we can talk and come to an agreement. Obviously we will have to live with them in the future, but today we have to stop these grave terrorist attacks. Our response of going into and out of the [PA-controlled] cities is leading us nowhere. At this rate, there will be no quiet - not that there was quiet when we controlled these areas, but it was not like it is now. It simply can\'t be that PA policemen will come out of Jenin, pass through all the checkpoints and start shooting in the heart of Hadera - it just cannot be. We need a much more painful surgical solution.\"
Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer appeared before the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee today. He said, \"If the IDF forces hadn\'t been in Area A, 20 Israelis a day would have been killed.\" Meretz MK Zahava Gal\'on attacked him: \"By that logic, we should have stayed there forever.\" Ben-Eliezer continued, \"I hope the Palestinian actions will justify continued withdrawals like the one last night... We would be willing to return [sic] additional areas to those who guarantee to maintain security.\"
In and around Jenin, however, the story is a different one. The IDF began digging a five-kilometer gully around parts of the city, to prevent terrorists from leaving the city and crossing the Green Line. The terrorists who committed the murders in Hadera yesterday came from Jenin.
Ben-Eliezer also told the MKs that the IDF thwarted a major attack in Tel Aviv yesterday, but he did not elaborate.