From CNN today: Israel blocks buses carrying Gaza pullout opponents:
Thousands of demonstrators gathered in Netivot Monday singing, praying and chanting in protest against the Israeli government's plan to pull out of Gaza and a small part of the West Bank.A pro-settler group, The Yesha Council, had predicted between 50,000 and 100,000 people would participate in the demonstration, but Israeli police blocked buses in dozens of Israeli cities as they attempted to ferry riders planning to join the protest. ...
Israel plans to complete the removal of Jewish settlers and the Israeli troops who guard them from those areas by mid-August.
Last year, Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon announced his country would close 21 settlements and move about 8,000 Israelis from Gaza, which is also home to about 1.3 million Palestinians.
Last week, the Palestinian terrorist Islmalic Jihad struck. AFP reported Sharon's comments afterward (via LGF):
Sharon said there would be no hiding place for Jihad as long as their members continued their acts of violence."I ordered the defence establishment to increase our activity and to do as much harm as possible to the leadership of the Islamic Jihad terror organisation," he said. "We will not leave them alone until they stop these murderous acts."
Israel has sharply rebuked Palestinian leader Mahmud Abbas for doing nothing to dismantle armed groups, even through the Palestinian leader denounced the suicide bombing as "a terrorist attack" and vowed to punish the perpetrators.
UPDATE July 21: From CNN: Israeli troops arrest 300 protesters entering Gaza.
Posted by Forkum at July 18, 2005 09:15 PM
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