(Updated Monday 10:15 AM) Under an agreement reached last night between top Israeli and Palestinian Authority leaders, Israel will begin withdrawing troops from Arab population centers in Gaza, as well as from the ancient Judean town of Bethlehem, as early as today. Defense Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer headed the delegation defending Israel’s positions at the four-hour meeting in the Tel-Aviv Hilton, while the PA’s Abdel Razek Yichye, who holds the Interior portfolio, represented Yasser Arafat’s team.
The proposal calls for the transferring of security control to PA forces immediately following the troop withdrawal. If there is a significant reduction in terror originating from those areas, Israel will begin easing closures on the Arab population. In addition, the plan calls on Israel to issue additional work permits for PA laborers to work inside of pre-1967 Israel. If the “pilot plan” is successful, Israel says that it will withdraw its troops from additional PA-controlled areas.
The proposal calls for the transferring of security control to PA forces immediately following the troop withdrawal. If there is a significant reduction in terror originating from those areas, Israel will begin easing closures on the Arab population. In addition, the plan calls on Israel to issue additional work permits for PA laborers to work inside of pre-1967 Israel. If the “pilot plan” is successful, Israel says that it will withdraw its troops from additional PA-controlled areas.