GAZA CITY, 20 August 2005 — Settlers from all but four Jewish settlements in the Gaza Strip were evicted by the army yesterday as Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas attributed the historic withdrawal to Palestinian sacrifices and patience.
An Israeli security source said Israel will begin the forced evacuation of two West Bank settlements on Tuesday after completing the withdrawal of all settlers from Gaza. Police and soldiers expect to complete the evictions from the Sanur and Homesh settlements in the West Bank within 24 hours of starting the pullout there, the source said. The Gaza evictions should be completed by Monday night, he added.
Sanur and Homesh would be the last of four West Bank settlements to be evacuated under Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s plan to “disengage” from the Palestinian conflict. The two are viewed as bastions of hardcore opposition to Sharon’s plan. Israel suspended its eviction of settlers for the Jewish Sabbath, having evacuated 87 percent of Gaza’s settlers in 2 1/2 days.
Smiling and waving to a cheering crowd at the closed Gaza International Airport, Abbas said Israel’s departure was bringing “historic days of joy” to the Palestinians.
Abbas promised that the airport, whose runways were destroyed by Israel in fighting in 2000, would again become a gateway for Palestinians.
Abbas also pledged the Palestinian Authority would rebuild the homes demolished by Israel during the past five years of conflict. He promised to reserve 5 percent of government jobs for the disabled, mainly war wounded.
Abbas told the crowd that Israel was quitting Gaza because of Palestinian “sacrifices” and “patience” — and promised that the withdrawal would lead to further pullouts from the West Bank and Jerusalem.
Earlier, hundreds of Palestinians from the town of Rafah offered prayers of thanks in sandy open ground within sight of two deserted settlements, celebrating the coming return of land.
A few kilometers to the north, Israel drove out the last settlers holed up in a synagogue in the settlement of Gadid, crashing through a flaming barricade of cars, wooden planks and garbage bins.
Israeli forces dug trenches around the evacuated Gush Katif settlement in the Gaza Strip in order to prevent Palestinians from entering the enclaves, where settler homes are to be demolished under a deal with the Palestinian Authority.
Demolition work began yesterday in the settlement of Kerem Atzmona.
In what has become a familiar scene this week, unarmed riot troops yesterday marched past flaming cars and surrounded Gadid’s synagogue before removing some 90 protesters, mainly radical youths who locked themselves inside.
Some youngsters prayed. Others cried or shouted abuse.
Eight of those removed from Gadid escaped from a bus taking them to Israel and fled into the Israeli-controlled Palestinian enclave of Al-Muwasi in the Gaza Strip, an army spokeswoman said, revising earlier information that dozens had bolted.
Israeli soldiers gave chase and caught them, she said.
— Additional input from agencies
