May 16, 2005
[Schwartz] Is/Pal - Watcha gonna do when the cops come for you...
Israel Lets Palestinian Police Carry Guns in Most West Bank Cities by Greg Myre. New York Times, May 16, 2005. pg. A.4
This is actually a big move. Ever since the start of the al-Aqsa Intifada five years ago, the State of Israel has been convinced (with some justification) that elements within the Palestinian security/police services also double as insurgents. The State of Israel has regarded the disarming of official Palestinian forces a serious security concern, so this is an important compromise by the Israelis. Of course, it may be part of Sharon's alleged "grand plan": creating a Palestinian non-state that polices itself, essentially maintains the Occupation for the IDF (the Guardian and Haaretz have some good articles about this; also, see the two New York Times Magazine articles I'm re-posting on this blog.)
At any rate, I'm a bit relieved by the news, because the Palestinian police have had a helluva time trying to control drug and arms traffickers in their cities. I know of an incident two years ago when Bethlehem cops cornered a terrorist with drug ties in a hotel; the terrorist's men were armed, the cops weren't--it was a bloodbath. One Palestinian officer who'd simply had enough ran back to his station and retrieved his weapon and the weapons of his friends. As he ran back to the hotel, the IDF detained him. The terrorist escaped, and alot of good cops were seriously wounded.
I'm also relieved because I have a close friend who is joining the Palestinian police. I'm no gun nut, but hey...
Click on "continue reading" for full article. The article also contains information on the latest (idiotic) maneuvers of the Israeli "Community," the homosexual rights political movement that wants to march in Jerusalem (and was idiotically opposed by the country's religious leaders. Amazing, isn't it, that the Orthodox, Catholics, Protestants, Sufis, Sunnis and Hasidim will spill each other's blood for *politics*, but'll unite against the rainbow flag.)
Palestinian policemen are now permitted to carry their weapons in most West Bank cities, the Israeli military said Sunday, a move that is one of the few signs of coordination between the sides in recent weeks.
The Palestinian leader, Mahmoud Abbas, says that to restore order in Palestinian areas, members of his security forces must be allowed to operate normally.
Israel's security forces have been in or near Palestinian cities in the West Bank amid the fighting in recent years, and Israel had forbidden Palestinian policemen to patrol with weapons.
When the two sides agreed to a truce in February, Israel pledged to return security control to the Palestinians in five West Bank towns, Bethlehem, Jericho, Qalqilya, Ramallah and Tulkarm. The transfer has occurred in only Jericho and Tulkarm, and Israel says the process has stalled because the Palestinians have taken little or no action against armed factions.
While violence is down sharply, periodic talks on security issues have produced more recriminations than agreements. However, the Palestinians are now permitted to carry weapons on the streets in most West Bank towns, the Israeli military officials said, confirming a report in the newspaper Haaretz. The shift is based on an agreement reached in recent talks between Israeli and Palestinian officials that had not been previously announced.
Also on Sunday, Palestinians in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip marched to mark the 57th anniversary of the founding of Israel, a day the Palestinians call ''al nakba,'' or ''the catastrophe.''
''Our people will never forget and the generations will never forget,'' Mr. Abbas, who is visiting Japan, said in remarks broadcast on Palestinian television. ''Peace, stability and security in the Middle East can only be achieved with a just solution to our cause.''
In contrast, Israelis held public celebrations and festive barbecues across the country on Thursday as they marked Israel's independence according to the Hebrew calendar.
Palestinian refugees from the 1948 war at Israel's founding, with their descendants, total some four million, according to the United Nations. Palestinians say the refugees must be allowed to return to their land, which is now part of Israel, and cite a 1948 United Nations resolution.
But Israel says it will never permit the mass return of refugees and their descendants because it would destroy the Jewish character of Israel.
Prime Minister Ariel Sharon of Israel told his cabinet ministers on Sunday to ''tone down their disputes,'' a reference to public spats.
Israel's two largest circulation newspapers had front-page articles on Sunday citing friction between the foreign minister, Silvan Shalom, and his wife on one side and the ambassador to Washington, Daniel Ayalon, and his wife on the other.
The reports said Mr. Shalom's wife, Judy Nir Moses Shalom, was upset that the Israeli Embassy in Washington could not arrange a meeting for her with the pop star Madonna when she came to Israel last September.
Ms. Shalom denied the reports to Israel's Channel 2 and said they were intended to divert attention from accusations against Ann Ayalon, the wife of the ambassador.
The media reports said Ms. Ayalon was suspected of verbally abusing household employees at the ambassador's official residence in Washington. An Israeli official has been sent to Washington to investigate.
In another development, a gay rights group in Israel delayed an international gay festival set for August in Jerusalem until August 2006.
The group, Jerusalem Open House, said it was delaying the festival, WorldPride 2005, because the original date coincided with Israel's plan to withdraw Jewish settlers from the Gaza Strip. The Israeli pullout had been planned for July, but was recently pushed back to August.
Jerusalem Open House said it did not want to hold the festival when political tensions were expected to be running high.
Jewish, Christian and Muslim clerics in Jerusalem recently denounced the festival. But organizers denied the objections had led to the delay.
