Panel Suggests West Bank Pullout Is Bad Idea
Ryan R. Jones - All Headline News Middle East Correspondent Jerusalem, Israel (AHN) - A panel established to examine the implications of an Israeli withdrawal from most of the West Bank has reported back that the move would likely fail to improve Israel's security or diplomatic position. Commissioned late last year before the downfall of former Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, the committee's findings were presented to the current government just weeks prior to the outbreak of the war in Lebanon. A source with access to the report told Ha'aretz that its primary conclusion is that Israel will have no military or political solution to missile attacks the Palestinians are certain to launch after the withdrawal. At present Israel is able to prevent the deployment of terrorist rockets in the West Bank by virtue of its control of the high ground. But a withdrawal would put the hills overlooking Israel's most populous regions in the hands of a Hamas-led Palestinian Authority. The report also concludes that Israel will not obtain international recognition for an end to the occupation, as it intends to retain control over several settlement blocs, thus eliminating the possibility of any long-term diplomatic gains. Prime Minister Ehud Olmert has already stated that what he calls the successful conclusion of the war in Lebanon will serve as a launch pad for his "realignment" plan.
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