Israel to Build Homes for Gaza Evacuees

04/17/2005

JERUSALEM (AP) - The Israeli Cabinet on Sunday approved the construction of 150 temporary homes for Jewish settlers set to be evacuated this summer from the Gaza Strip, an official said, part of rapidly developing preparations for the pullout.

The construction decision came during a weekly Cabinet session in which ministers also voted to set up a committee to oversee all civilian aspects of the withdrawal program. The plan will uproot 9,000 Israelis from the 21 Jewish settlements in Gaza and four small communities in the West Bank.

As the Cabinet met, security officials held their first dress rehearsal for carrying out the withdrawals. The computer-driven “virtual” exercise simulated violent confrontations with Jewish settlers and tested the decision-making of security officials in real time.

The evacuation, set to begin in three months, is shaping up as one of the most formidable challenges in Israeli history. Prime Minister Ariel Sharon must overcome financial and logistical difficulties.

At the same time, the government is coping with threats by Jewish extremists to prevent security forces from removing them from their homes, while also preparing for the possibility of attacks by Palestinian militants.

At Sunday’s Cabinet meeting, ministers allocated $4.5 million to build 150 temporary housing units in southern Israel, an official who participated in the meeting said.

The official said on condition on anonymity that because of the nature of the information, construction would begin within several days and would go forward in five communities. Israel Radio said the sites would be in rural villages near Gaza.

The Cabinet decision on establishing a committee to oversee the withdrawal program was taken to “increase its efficiency and speed up work related to the evacuation of communities in the Gaza Strip and the northern West Bank and provide alternative living solutions,” Sharon’s office said.

The announcement said the committee would include Sharon, vice premiers Shimon Peres and Ehud Olmert, Finance Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Justice Minister Tsipi Livni.

Earlier this month, Sharon inspected the Nitzanim area north of the southern city of Ashkelon, mentioned as a possible site for permanently relocating Gaza settlers.

The relocation program is expected to cost several billion dollars, and it still is unclear where the money will be found. Israeli officials have said the United States may be willing to foot at least part of the cost.

Israeli security officials have expressed fears that settlers - who fiercely oppose Sharon’s withdrawal plan - could violently oppose the pullout, even shooting at soldiers and police ordered to evacuate them.

One scenario in Sunday’s exercise involved tens of thousands of settlers holing up in the communities slated for evacuation and violently resisting the pullout, the officials said.

In a related development, Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas said Sunday he was ready to coordinate fully with Israel’s Gaza pullout. Abbas spoke after meeting with President Hosni Mubarak in Egypt but did not elaborate on the extent of Palestinian cooperation.

Israeli officials have appealed to the Palestinian leader to disarm militant groups, fearing chaos during the evacuation.

Abbas said he still wants assurances that the Israeli withdrawal was part of the internationally backed “road map” peace plan for establishing a Palestinian state.

“I confirmed with President Mubarak ... that we are ready to coordinate with the Israelis completely,” Abbas said. “But we have to know where our feet are taking us, and whether (the disengagement) is tied to the road map, and whether they are complete withdrawals.”

Reflecting the challenges Abbas faces, armed Palestinian militants shut down a government building in the West Bank town of Jenin Sunday and threatened to kill members of the Palestinian parliament, demanding the Palestinian Authority provide them with jobs.

The militants, firing weapons into the air, were led by Zakariye Zubbeidi, the head of the local branch of the Al Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades - a militant group linked to Abbas’ Fatah movement. The confrontation was defused, witnesses said. There were no injuries.