Gaza march on hold

OFAKIM – Thousands of Israeli rightists suspended a march on Gaza settlements yesterday after security forces blocked their path to prevent them from disrupting a planned pullout from the occupied territory.

Demonstrators who had been halted by police and soldiers as they surged out of Ofakim in southern Israel turned back towards the town just after dawn, and settler leaders said they would rest and decide what to do next. Small bands of protesters had managed to slip past the massive cordon of security forces overnight, and police said they had arrested more than 200 people near roadblocks at Israel’s border with the fenced-in Gaza Strip.It was the latest attempt by settlers and their supporters to thwart Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s plan to evacuate all Jewish settlements in Gaza starting on Aug.17 in what he has called “disengagement” from the flashpoint coastal strip.Polls show most Israelis support the planned withdrawal from Gaza and evacuation of four isolated West Bank settlements, but opponents say it would betray Jewish biblical claims to the land and reward a nearly five-year-old Palestinian uprising.- Nampa-ReutersSmall bands of protesters had managed to slip past the massive cordon of security forces overnight, and police said they had arrested more than 200 people near roadblocks at Israel’s border with the fenced-in Gaza Strip.It was the latest attempt by settlers and their supporters to thwart Prime Minister Ariel Sharon’s plan to evacuate all Jewish settlements in Gaza starting on Aug.17 in what he has called “disengagement” from the flashpoint coastal strip.Polls show most Israelis support the planned withdrawal from Gaza and evacuation of four isolated West Bank settlements, but opponents say it would betray Jewish biblical claims to the land and reward a nearly five-year-old Palestinian uprising.- Nampa-Reuters