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| Israel-Palestine-Jordan |
| Israel approves plan to ease Gaza land blockade |
| 2010-06-18 |
| [Al Arabiya Latest] Israel on Thursday approved a plan to ease its blockade of the Hamas-run Gaza Strip following weeks of international pressure, but provided few details on what new goods would be allowed in. The security cabinet's decision was a response to mounting international calls to ease the four-year blockade of the impoverished Palestinian territory in the wake of a deadly May 31 raid on a fleet of aid ships. Under the plan, Israel would "liberalize the system by which civilian goods enter Gaza (and) expand the inflow of materials for civilian projects that are under international supervision," the government said in a brief statement. Defense Minister Ehud Barak said Israel would maintain its naval blockade and inspect all goods entering by land. "The intention is to ensure that more goods can enter, but always after an Israeli check, which will ensure that there is no weaponry, no arms and no materials which could be used for warfare," he said in a statement. Hamas swiftly rejected the move, which senior leader Ismail Radwan dismissed as an attempt to "relieve the pressure" on Israel following the flotilla incident. "We in Hamas reject the Zionist decision, which is an attempt to obscure the international decision to completely lift the siege," he told AFP. The Western-backed Palestinian Authority also rejected the move, with chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat calling it a "public relations ploy." "President Mahmoud Abbas demands the complete lifting of the siege on the Gaza Strip," he told AFP. "He believes there are no partial solutions." The European Union, meanwhile, welcomed the Israeli decision. "We're looking with great interest to what the Israeli cabinet has said this morning," top EU diplomat Catherine Ashton said, adding that she hoped it would allow "many more products" to enter Gaza. But France's Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner told reporters: "It is the first major progress since the crisis began. But it is not enough." |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #1 Cause meet effect. |
| Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2010-06-18 15:38 |