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| Israel-Palestine-Jordan |
| Israel rules out opening Gaza border if Hamas gains |
| 2009-01-24 |
| Israel has all but ruled out fully reopening border crossings with the Gaza Strip as long as Hamas rules the enclave or stands to benefit from easing of the restrictions, a top adviser to Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said. Speaking a day after Olmert spoke by telephone to US President Barack Obama, the adviser expressed confidence the new administration in Washington would maintain George W Bush's policy of refusing to deal with or talk to Hamas. The adviser spoke to a small group of reporters at Israel's military headquarters in Tel Aviv, on condition of anonymity. Flow of supplies: The adviser said Israel would allow the "maximum" flow of food, medicine, oil and gas to the Gaza Strip to help its 1.5 million residents recover from the offensive, which killed more than 1,300 Palestinians, but a wider range of goods, including steel and cement needed for rebuilding, would have to wait. Israel believes the restrictions will give it leverage to pressure Hamas to free Gilad Shalit, a captured Israeli soldier. Diplomats and aid agencies say the restrictions will doom Gaza's reconstruction, estimated to cost at least $2 billion. Olmert's adviser said Israel's underlying goal was to deny Hamas control over border crossings that could help it cement its hold on power. "If opening the passages will strengthen Hamas, we won't do it," he said. European powers have called on Israel to reopen the border crossings fully. The adviser said he doubted Hamas would agree to let Abbas's security forces, backed by international observers, return to the border crossings, as Israel and Egypt have proposed. He said Abbas's forces did "something remarkable" in the West Bank by "containing riots and demonstrations" during the war on Gaza but added that they were not ready for Gaza. "It's a limited force. And in order to take it to Gaza, I think they need first more training, more forces, and this is something that takes time." Even if Hamas agreed to let Abbas's Palestinian Authority run the crossings, Israel believes Hamas would maintain control behind the scenes and take over "within days", he said. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #1 I supposed they could build a tunnel to bring in the rebar. |
| Posted by: .5MT 2009-01-24 07:14 |