What a joke
What a joke
Debka
(Why isn't Israel calling the shots. Terrorism is on the rise everywhere yet the Quartet wants Israel to expose themselves to more terror. Israel must say No, No, No)
Palestinian objections to CCTV cameras’ transmitting live data to Israel are the last sticking point for the reopening of the Rafah border terminal between Egypt and Gaza
DEBKAfile adds: The Palestinians will only accept a 48-delay in transmission -which makes the device pretty useless for monitoring the arrival of terrorists and keeping them out. Yet the Palestinian position is backed solidly by the Middle East Quartet’s coordinator and the European Union.
Israel agreed to European inspectors taking over its 38-year old security presence at the terminal - provided long-distance monitoring of traffic was possible via a computer hookup to CCTV cameras. This was necessary because the Palestinians deny the European inspectors the authority to bar entry or make arrests. At their meeting in Brussels, Monday, Nov. 7, EU foreign ministers accepted this and agreed to deploy border inspectors for three years, solely “to instruct the Palestinians” on their functions.
No one will therefore guard the Palestinian gate to Egypt against terrorists incoming from anywhere to converge on the Gaza.
However, the Quartet’s document on the Rafah terminal focuses heavily on Palestinian economic development and demands for sovereignty, neglecting (a sieve with very large holes) questions of security and terrorist infiltration.
All this was made clear to defense minister Shaul Mofaz at his Tuesday Nov. 8 meeting with Middle East Quartet coordinator James Wolfensohn. He promised to put the document before the cabinet Wednesday. Israel is being pushed hard by the Quartet’s coordinator to get it signed Thursday when EU external relations executive Javier Solana is due. It will then be ready for the arrival of US secretary of state Condoleezza Rice next week.
By the same token, the Quartet insists on Israel keeping the Karni and Erez crossings from Gaza open in all circumstances for the passage of at least 150 trucks of Palestinian produce a day. Both crossings have been regularly targeted by Palestinian terrorists at heavy cost of life to Israeli civilians and soldiers. They were closed because the Palestinians have made no effort to make installations secure.
DEBKAfile’s intelligence and military sources note that there is not much point in the fuss Israel is raising over the CCTV at this late date. The battle was lost when the Sharon government agreed to forego control over arrivals entering the Gaza Strip and not just departures.
Furthermore, there has been no interruption in the large-scale transfer of terrorists and weapons from Sinai through a network of illicit tunnels through the Philadelphi route - despite Egypt’s written commitment to police the border. Indeed new smuggling rings have been formed by Palestinian groups and Egyptian border guards who lend a hand at fixed rates.
These smuggling routes are well out of range of Rafah border cameras and will be invisible to the European “inspectors.”
The European paper monitors will be as much use in Rafah as Egyptian dual-purpose “border police” on the Philadelphi route.
Posted by Ted Belman at November 9, 2005 03:36 PM
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1
.
BobW
said:
This entire episode was caused by the use of language. Gentiles say the Israelis read Hebrew from the right to the left. GOI reads it backwards.
In much of the world, difficult political arrangements are made and secured prior to losing one's position of strength. Israel is using a method not as effective.
GOI planning neglected to consider Egyptian positions. An emergency could place the IDF back in Gaza. It was the modification to the Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty where the danger lies.
I do not think GOI is performing on its own free will, ie as a sovereign. If I'm correct, Sharon,Peres, Mofaz & Co. should be working on addresing what's left of Israel as a bifurcated state.
Plus, next year, it's not inconceivable that Egypt could have a different form of government.
For want of strategy an army falls
But victory comes with much planning
Proverbs 11:14
Kol tuv,
BobW
Posted by: BobW on November 9, 2005 04:33 PM
2
.
Van Helsing
said:
No country can afford to trust its security to others. This goes double for Israel.
Posted by: Van Helsing on November 9, 2005 04:43 PM
What a joke
Debka
(Why isn't Israel calling the shots. Terrorism is on the rise everywhere yet the Quartet wants Israel to expose themselves to more terror. Israel must say No, No, No)
Palestinian objections to CCTV cameras’ transmitting live data to Israel are the last sticking point for the reopening of the Rafah border terminal between Egypt and Gaza
DEBKAfile adds: The Palestinians will only accept a 48-delay in transmission -which makes the device pretty useless for monitoring the arrival of terrorists and keeping them out. Yet the Palestinian position is backed solidly by the Middle East Quartet’s coordinator and the European Union.
Israel agreed to European inspectors taking over its 38-year old security presence at the terminal - provided long-distance monitoring of traffic was possible via a computer hookup to CCTV cameras. This was necessary because the Palestinians deny the European inspectors the authority to bar entry or make arrests. At their meeting in Brussels, Monday, Nov. 7, EU foreign ministers accepted this and agreed to deploy border inspectors for three years, solely “to instruct the Palestinians” on their functions.
No one will therefore guard the Palestinian gate to Egypt against terrorists incoming from anywhere to converge on the Gaza.
However, the Quartet’s document on the Rafah terminal focuses heavily on Palestinian economic development and demands for sovereignty, neglecting (a sieve with very large holes) questions of security and terrorist infiltration.
All this was made clear to defense minister Shaul Mofaz at his Tuesday Nov. 8 meeting with Middle East Quartet coordinator James Wolfensohn. He promised to put the document before the cabinet Wednesday. Israel is being pushed hard by the Quartet’s coordinator to get it signed Thursday when EU external relations executive Javier Solana is due. It will then be ready for the arrival of US secretary of state Condoleezza Rice next week.
By the same token, the Quartet insists on Israel keeping the Karni and Erez crossings from Gaza open in all circumstances for the passage of at least 150 trucks of Palestinian produce a day. Both crossings have been regularly targeted by Palestinian terrorists at heavy cost of life to Israeli civilians and soldiers. They were closed because the Palestinians have made no effort to make installations secure.
DEBKAfile’s intelligence and military sources note that there is not much point in the fuss Israel is raising over the CCTV at this late date. The battle was lost when the Sharon government agreed to forego control over arrivals entering the Gaza Strip and not just departures.
Furthermore, there has been no interruption in the large-scale transfer of terrorists and weapons from Sinai through a network of illicit tunnels through the Philadelphi route - despite Egypt’s written commitment to police the border. Indeed new smuggling rings have been formed by Palestinian groups and Egyptian border guards who lend a hand at fixed rates.
These smuggling routes are well out of range of Rafah border cameras and will be invisible to the European “inspectors.”
The European paper monitors will be as much use in Rafah as Egyptian dual-purpose “border police” on the Philadelphi route.
Posted by Ted Belman at November 9, 2005 03:36 PM