The Israeli army betrayed the "Gaza-Bethlehem First" agreement before it could begin, reports Khaled Amayreh from Jerusalem Click to view caption The "Gaza-Bethlehem First" agreement, signed on 18 August between Israeli Defence Minister Benyamin Ben-Eliezer and PA official Abdel-Razzaq Al-Yahya, was supposed to lead to a gradual Israeli army withdrawal from Palestinian towns in the West Bank and an easing of curfews and other restrictions placed on the Palestinian people. However, as soon as Israeli occupation troops left the streets of Bethlehem Israeli political and military leaders started issuing statements emphasising the "insignificance" of the agreement, stressing that it wouldn't change anything on the ground. Right wing members of the ruling coalition government charged Sharon with leading the Israeli people down another "Oslo path." Sharon, responded to these critics saying that his hard-line approach toward the Palestinians remained unchanged. Sharon boasted, "we only removed two or three jeeps from the streets of Bethlehem, that is all we've done, and our forces are clamping a siege on the city preventing anyone from getting in or out." On 25 August, Moshe Ya'alon, the new chief of staff, spoke to a group of Messianic Jewish Rabbis. In his comments he stated that the Palestinian Authority is "a malignant cancer that must be eradicated". He claimed that Palestinian resistance against Israeli occupation posed "an existential threat" to Israel. Ya'alon concluded by saying the only alternative available to Israel was to "inflict a decisive defeat on the Palestinians before the two sides can sit down around the negotiation table." In other words, only decisive military action can solve the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians. Most Israeli leaders received Ya'alon's remarks favorably or with silent approval. Israel's Environment Minister Tzahi Hanegbi, a Sharon loyalist, said the vitriolic remarks "reflected reality" and represented "a professional assessment of the situation". Defence Minister Ben- Eliezer didn't bother to comment, signaling to some his discontent with the government. Only opposition leader Yossi Sarid expressed dissatisfaction at Ya'alon's statements which he said created an impression of Israel being ruled by a military junta where generals call the shots. Meanwhile, the Israeli army maintained its tight hold on the West Bank and Gaza Strip. On 26 August, Israeli forces re-invaded Jenin and the adjacent Jenin refugee camp. Israeli troops encircled several homes and a mosque before arresting 46-year-old Jamal Abul-Haija, a local Islamist political leader who Israel claims masterminded Palestinian resistance efforts. Earlier, the Israeli army invaded Salfit, south-west of Nablus, and in the Tulkarm area destroyed several homes belonging to the families of "wanted Palestinians". In rural areas of the West Bank, the Israeli army occupied large tracts of land belonging to Palestinians, in many cases destroying what little remains of Palestinian food sources. The most brazen Israeli actions against the Palestinians took place in Ramallah on 20 August when undercover Israeli soldiers murdered Mohamed Sa'adat, brother of Ahmed Sa'adat, the imprisoned PFLP leader who is incarcerated in Jericho under joint American-British supervision. The assassination of Sa'adat seemed to be aimed at undercutting PA efforts to convince Palestinian opposition groups to give the "Gaza-Bethlehem First" agreement a chance. Instead, the murder of Sa'adat, whom in Israeli analysts' own words was not a "big or even a medium fish", strengthened the position of groups like Hamas and the Islamic Jihad. These groups remain steadfast in their conviction that it is Israel and not Palestinians who are working to betray agreements. Abdel-Razzaq Al-Yahya, the newly appointed interior minister of the PA, met with a Hamas leader in Gaza earlier this week. Al-Yahya hoped to encourage Hamas to observe a cease-fire, but he was confronted with the following question: "Do you guarantee that Israel will reciprocate if we observe a cease-fire?" Al-Yahya remained silent, knowing quite well that he cannot make such a guarantee. He returned to Ramallah to report to Arafat on his talks in Gaza. On his way, he heard on the radio that Israeli troops had just murdered Mohamed Sa'adat in Ramallah. The cycle of violence continues.
