Knesset members have begun to discuss the possibility of transferring control of border crossings with Gaza to an international force, in view of the fact that the Islamist Hamas terrorist organization has almost completed its total takeover of the region.
Kadima MK Otniel Schneller recommended Thursday that a multi-national force take control of the Erez and Karni crossings, through which goods are delivered, and Palestinian Authority Arabs, diplomatic officials and other VIPs travel.
“Israel should prepare itself for a situation in which the Gaza Strip is run as an independent terrorist entity which is cut off from the Palestinian Authority,” said MK Schneller.
“Bringing international forces into areas between the Israeli border and the populated areas in the Strip will aid in a secure separation as well as contribute to the security of Israeli residents who live in the vicinity of Gaza,” he added.
Meretz Knesset members Zahava Gal-On and Avshalom Vilan both urged the government to open emergency talks with the United Nations, as well as the Arab League, to also discuss the possibility of deploying such a force inside Gaza as a means of restoring calm.
MK Yuval Steinitz, meanwhile, slammed the idea. The Likud legislator maintained that “only the IDF can destroy the terrorist infrastructure and stop arms smuggling into the Strip.”
Knesset Member Steinitz added that he believes it is “useless” to talk about an international force in Gaza, saying that “attempts to rely on international forces are doomed to failure.”
The Hamas terrorist organization agrees. Spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri told reporters “Hamas rejects any dispatch of foreign forces to the Gaza Strip. The movement would regard those forces as occupation forces no different than the Israeli occupation, regardless of their nationality.”
PA Chairman and Fatah leader Mahmoud Abbas had discussed the idea in a phone conversation with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert earlier in the week.
Kadima MK Otniel Schneller recommended Thursday that a multi-national force take control of the Erez and Karni crossings, through which goods are delivered, and Palestinian Authority Arabs, diplomatic officials and other VIPs travel.
“Israel should prepare itself for a situation in which the Gaza Strip is run as an independent terrorist entity which is cut off from the Palestinian Authority,” said MK Schneller.
“Bringing international forces into areas between the Israeli border and the populated areas in the Strip will aid in a secure separation as well as contribute to the security of Israeli residents who live in the vicinity of Gaza,” he added.
Meretz Knesset members Zahava Gal-On and Avshalom Vilan both urged the government to open emergency talks with the United Nations, as well as the Arab League, to also discuss the possibility of deploying such a force inside Gaza as a means of restoring calm.
MK Yuval Steinitz, meanwhile, slammed the idea. The Likud legislator maintained that “only the IDF can destroy the terrorist infrastructure and stop arms smuggling into the Strip.”
Knesset Member Steinitz added that he believes it is “useless” to talk about an international force in Gaza, saying that “attempts to rely on international forces are doomed to failure.”
The Hamas terrorist organization agrees. Spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri told reporters “Hamas rejects any dispatch of foreign forces to the Gaza Strip. The movement would regard those forces as occupation forces no different than the Israeli occupation, regardless of their nationality.”
PA Chairman and Fatah leader Mahmoud Abbas had discussed the idea in a phone conversation with Prime Minister Ehud Olmert earlier in the week.