- The government will try to evacuate illegal outposts
in the West Bank before the U.S. presidential elections in November, sources
in the prime minister's bureau said Saturday. "We have an interest
in evacuating them," one said.
-
- Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is expecting the report of
Justice Ministry attorney Talia Sasson, who was charged with finding a
legal solution for a speedy evacuation of the outposts.
-
- Sharon's outgoing bureau chief, Dov Weisglass, said Saturday
in an interview with Channel 2 that Sasson's recommendations will be presented
to Sharon in six weeks to two months. This would give Sharon "more
effective tools to evacuate the outposts and he will begin to do so energetically,"
he said.
-
- Weisglass said "we cannot boast" of moves to
evacuate the outposts, but "we will keep this undertaking in full."
-
- According to the defense establishment, 23 outposts have
been built in the West Bank since March 2001, when Sharon came to power.
The administrative and legal steps to evacuate the outposts were presented
last Thursday to White House envoy Elliot Abrams, who met the defense minister's
adviser, Baruch Spiegel, and Sasson.
-
- Sharon's aids criticized Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz
for not acting resolutely enough to evacuate the outposts, and for publicly
confirming the plans to build 550 apartments in Ma'aleh Adumim. Sources
close to Mofaz commented "the defense minister and prime minister
are fully coordinated and there is no difference in their positions. All
the decisions on the outposts and the construction were made by both of
them."
-
- Weisglass told Channel 2 that Israeli officials are holding
"unofficial talks" with former Palestinian minister Mohamed Dahlan.
"He has many acquaintances in Israel," said Weisglass. Senior
officials said Dahlan was in touch with Shin Bet director Avi Dichter and
head of the Defense Ministry's political-security division Amos Gilad,
and less frequently with Weisglass.
-
- Weisglass is due to leave for the U.S. on August 19 for
a meeting with National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice. He was expected
to present the separation fence's amended route, but due to delays in planning
and the pending High Court debate on the petition against the fence, the
route will be decided by month's end.
|
