MK Michael Eitan (Likud) says he will meet with Attorney-General Elyakim Rubenstein, and will then decide whether to file a petition in the Supreme Court against the planned construction of a partition along the Green Line. Many other MKs of the Yesha Forum in the Knesset are up in arms at what they call a \"grab\" by Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer in ordering the construction of the fence. MK Eli Cohen (Likud) says that Ben-Eliezer took advantage of Prime Minister Sharon\'s absence in order to score points against his Labor Party rival, MK Chaim Ramon.
Minister without Portfolio Yitzchak Levy (NRP) said today,
\"The plan presented by the Defense Minister at the Knesset committee yesterday and afterwards in the media is very different than that which we agreed to in the Cabinet. The Cabinet decided on buffer zones, not a fence. Buffer zones are created where they are needed, not necessarily along the Green Line, but closer to the PA cities. This seems to be a bypass of government decisions, and we find ourselves with a political fence - not one that can significantly protect the citizens of Israel. Take for instance the Lebanese fence, which is the most dangerous border in Israel, because Hizbullah has set up observation points and outposts all along the fence, and this is what will happen with this new fence - and we won\'t be able to do anything, because [it will be claimed that] after all, there\'s a fence!\"
Six MKs - Eli Cohen, David Magen, Ze\'ev Boim, Benny Elon, M. Eitan and Uri Ariel - convened yesterday together with Yesha Council representatives to discuss the situation. They are concerned that the planned partition, though ostensibly designed to protect the security of Israelis in pre-1967 Israel, will be built along the Green Line and thus represent a de-facto return to the 1967 borders. MK Cohen says that despite the fact that work began today, he is confident that it can be stopped, \"given the resolute political enlistment [against the move]\" and because \"this is an attempt to create political facts with important future ramifications.\"
Arutz-7 correspondent Haggai Huberman reported today that a Central Command officer says that the partition will not have political ramifications, and will in fact be built in accordance with the topography of the area. There will be an attempt not to include Arabs on the \"Israeli\" side, but some Arabs will be included, and even some Israeli areas will be on the \"wrong\" side - all in accordance with security and topographic considerations. Defense Minister Ben-Eliezer may present the planned delineation of the route to reporters this Sunday. Today\'s construction involves a section along the Green Line, from Um el Fahm northeast towards Salam. The Central Command official said that the work will not continue elsewhere until Prime Minister Sharon meets with army officials and possibly Yesha leaders.
Public Security Minister Uzi Landau, speaking in Tiberias last night, said that the fact that the IDF will be present on both sides of the partition detracts from its political significance. Landau, who has objected in the past to a fence, also called last night for the expulsion of Arafat, and for the IDF to remain in PA-controlled areas until terrorism has been totally suppressed. \"The longer we wait to enter these areas,\" Landau warned, \"the higher will be the price we will pay.\" He acknowledged that the \"Palestinians in Gaza have been trying lately to overcome the fence there by using gliders and the like.\"
Minister without Portfolio Yitzchak Levy (NRP) said today,
\"The plan presented by the Defense Minister at the Knesset committee yesterday and afterwards in the media is very different than that which we agreed to in the Cabinet. The Cabinet decided on buffer zones, not a fence. Buffer zones are created where they are needed, not necessarily along the Green Line, but closer to the PA cities. This seems to be a bypass of government decisions, and we find ourselves with a political fence - not one that can significantly protect the citizens of Israel. Take for instance the Lebanese fence, which is the most dangerous border in Israel, because Hizbullah has set up observation points and outposts all along the fence, and this is what will happen with this new fence - and we won\'t be able to do anything, because [it will be claimed that] after all, there\'s a fence!\"
Six MKs - Eli Cohen, David Magen, Ze\'ev Boim, Benny Elon, M. Eitan and Uri Ariel - convened yesterday together with Yesha Council representatives to discuss the situation. They are concerned that the planned partition, though ostensibly designed to protect the security of Israelis in pre-1967 Israel, will be built along the Green Line and thus represent a de-facto return to the 1967 borders. MK Cohen says that despite the fact that work began today, he is confident that it can be stopped, \"given the resolute political enlistment [against the move]\" and because \"this is an attempt to create political facts with important future ramifications.\"
Arutz-7 correspondent Haggai Huberman reported today that a Central Command officer says that the partition will not have political ramifications, and will in fact be built in accordance with the topography of the area. There will be an attempt not to include Arabs on the \"Israeli\" side, but some Arabs will be included, and even some Israeli areas will be on the \"wrong\" side - all in accordance with security and topographic considerations. Defense Minister Ben-Eliezer may present the planned delineation of the route to reporters this Sunday. Today\'s construction involves a section along the Green Line, from Um el Fahm northeast towards Salam. The Central Command official said that the work will not continue elsewhere until Prime Minister Sharon meets with army officials and possibly Yesha leaders.
Public Security Minister Uzi Landau, speaking in Tiberias last night, said that the fact that the IDF will be present on both sides of the partition detracts from its political significance. Landau, who has objected in the past to a fence, also called last night for the expulsion of Arafat, and for the IDF to remain in PA-controlled areas until terrorism has been totally suppressed. \"The longer we wait to enter these areas,\" Landau warned, \"the higher will be the price we will pay.\" He acknowledged that the \"Palestinians in Gaza have been trying lately to overcome the fence there by using gliders and the like.\"