Construction work on the partition fence, on which many people are relying to keep terrorists out of pre-1967 Israel, has begun, and the public debate over its value and/or the damage it may cause is getting more vocal. Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has called a security cabinet meeting for Wednesday to discuss the various ramifications of the partition.
Culture Minister Matan Vilnai (Labor), a former IDF Deputy Chief of Staff, does not deny that it has significance in terms of a future border with the Palestinians, but says that this will be true only if there is a “partner” on the other side of the negotiating table. Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer said again today that the partition is only of a security-oriented nature, and that it has no political ramifications. He called on all those who object to it to stop their protest activities.
MK Yuval Shteinitz (Likud) countered that the fence has no security value and only political significance:
“In Lebanon, the terrorists didn’t circumvent the fence by shooting katyushas over it? … The question is not whether how this fence will protect us, but how we will protect the fence. … It is patently clear that this fence will mark a future border with the PA. This is why I say that if it has to be built, let it be built far away from the Green Line, and let it include the city of Ariel and neighboring communities within the [Israeli] side.”
MK Sha’ul Yahalom (National Religious Party) is also against the fence, for diplomatic, defense, and moral reasons. Explaining the last point, he said today,
“It simply differentiates between the blood of those Israelis living on one side of the fence and those who are to be on the other side. Jews who live in Yesha are less important to the State of Israel than those who live elsewhere?”
Finally, MK Tzvi Hendel, of the opposition National Union party, called upon the NRP, Gesher, and Yisrael B’Aliyah to leave the government coalition in protest of the beginning of the construction.
Defense Ministry officials say that the first stage of the partition is to run from the Sharon region towards Um el Fahm, for a length of 110 kilometers. The fence will cost a million dollars per kilometer, and will include sandy expanses to detect footprints and entries, an asphalt road for patrols, and advanced electronic sensors.
PA Cabinet member Saeb Erekat said, “Israel’s construction of this fence along the Green Line is a violation of all our signed agreements with Israel, including the Oslo Agreement itself.” He said that the PA has asked the UN Security Council to hold an urgent session on the matter.
Culture Minister Matan Vilnai (Labor), a former IDF Deputy Chief of Staff, does not deny that it has significance in terms of a future border with the Palestinians, but says that this will be true only if there is a “partner” on the other side of the negotiating table. Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer said again today that the partition is only of a security-oriented nature, and that it has no political ramifications. He called on all those who object to it to stop their protest activities.
MK Yuval Shteinitz (Likud) countered that the fence has no security value and only political significance:
“In Lebanon, the terrorists didn’t circumvent the fence by shooting katyushas over it? … The question is not whether how this fence will protect us, but how we will protect the fence. … It is patently clear that this fence will mark a future border with the PA. This is why I say that if it has to be built, let it be built far away from the Green Line, and let it include the city of Ariel and neighboring communities within the [Israeli] side.”
MK Sha’ul Yahalom (National Religious Party) is also against the fence, for diplomatic, defense, and moral reasons. Explaining the last point, he said today,
“It simply differentiates between the blood of those Israelis living on one side of the fence and those who are to be on the other side. Jews who live in Yesha are less important to the State of Israel than those who live elsewhere?”
Finally, MK Tzvi Hendel, of the opposition National Union party, called upon the NRP, Gesher, and Yisrael B’Aliyah to leave the government coalition in protest of the beginning of the construction.
Defense Ministry officials say that the first stage of the partition is to run from the Sharon region towards Um el Fahm, for a length of 110 kilometers. The fence will cost a million dollars per kilometer, and will include sandy expanses to detect footprints and entries, an asphalt road for patrols, and advanced electronic sensors.
PA Cabinet member Saeb Erekat said, “Israel’s construction of this fence along the Green Line is a violation of all our signed agreements with Israel, including the Oslo Agreement itself.” He said that the PA has asked the UN Security Council to hold an urgent session on the matter.