I don't care much for the so-called Palestinian leadership, whose decent into random terrorism has obliterated any sympathy I once had for the Palestinian cause. If Israel took up the PLO bigwigs and hanged them tomorrow, I'd cheer. On the other hand, Prime Minister Sharon has never really given much indication he was seeking peace, Infitada or not. But today's news strikes me as an unexpected burst of sanity out of an insane part of the world.
JERUSALEM (AP) - Prime Minister Ariel Sharon told his stunned Likud Party on Monday he plans to dismantle all Israeli settlements in the Gaza Strip - his most specific comment yet on unilateral steps if peace talks fail, participants in the meeting said.For Israel to support a handful of settlers in an area where there is no tactical or strategic gain to be had, and huge risks, has always struck me as ludcrous. The only reason many of these people are there is an in-your-face assertion of Manifest Destiny -- the more vocal elements of the Transportation factions. Such settlements are utterly incompatible with any kind of lasting peace (which Transportation is not among).
Sharon spoke to Likud lawmakers just hours after telling the Haaretz daily he has "given an order to plan for the evacuation" of the 17 Gaza settlements, which are home to about 7,500 Israelis.
"I don't know if it will be done in one go, or gradually, but over the course of time, it will not be right to continue Jewish settlement in Gaza," a Likud official quoted Sharon as telling the legislators. Sharon referred to Jewish settlement in Gaza as "a security burden and a source of continuous friction," said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity.