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Israel begins Gaza pull-out
Ed Harris19.01.09
ISRAELI troops will pull out of the Gaza strip before tomorrow's inauguration of Barack Obama as US president, government officials said today.
The first indication that Israel planned a rapid withdrawal came after it announced a unilateral ceasefire late on Saturday. It is thought the decision to opt for a speedy withdrawal could be linked to Israel's desire to get off to a smooth start with the new American administration.
Thousands of troops started leaving Gaza on Saturday, the day before Hamas declared a week-long truce yesterday. However government spokesman Mark Regev would not confirm the timetable, and said only that if Gaza remained quiet, Israel's departure would be "almost immediate".
Prime minister Ehud Olmert said he wanted troops to leave Gaza "as quickly as possible", adding: "We didn't set out to control Gaza, we don't want to remain in Gaza and we intend on leaving Gaza as quickly as possible."
The head of Hamas claimed a "popular victory" against Israel. "The enemy has failed to achieve its goals," Ismail Haniyeh said. Hamas's truce decision, conditional on Israel withdrawing within a week, was "wise and responsible," he said.
Gaza officials said a first count showed that 20,000 residential and government buildings were severely damaged and another 4,000 destroyed. Fifty of the UN's 220 schools, clinics and warehouses were battered in the shelling. About 50,000 Gazans have sought refuge in UN compounds. It is not clear how many of them remain homeless.
The first movements of troops allowed doctors and families to recover more than 100 dead yesterday, according to Palestinian health officials. The number of Palestinian dead now stands at more than 1,250, half of them civilians. Thirteen Israelis have died.
Britain yesterday announced it was tripling its aid to Gaza, with an additional £20 million going toward rebuilding damaged homes and helping the injured.
Reader views (1)
Perhaps now the Israel loving bush has gone some sense and sanity will return to the region, getting rid of Tony Blair would be another major step forward. Then Israel should be made to pay for all the damage and carnage it caused. The bleat is always Hamas launches rockets at Israel, why, because on bush's direction they brought the Palestinians near starvation by blocking the access for supplies and then conducted a war on civilians using the arms provided by the good old USA.
- Mark Devries, Bangkok Thailand
