Israel Matzav

'Palestinians' allowed to travel freely in Judea and Samaria

Here's a story you're not likely to read in too many mainstream media sources. The 'Palestinians' can travel freely in Judea and Samaria. The picture - which came from the Washington Times - is a picture of downtown Shchem (Nablus) and it seems to be bustling with activity.

At Israeli checkpoints around Nablus - the second-largest city in the West Bank and once notorious as a den of militant activity - the wait time for Palestinians has been reduced from several hours to a few minutes. Downtown streets that echoed with gunfire at the height of the Palestinian intifada now buzz with cars that ply their way through throngs of pedestrians.

Israeli officers say that the number of checkpoints staffed by them has been cut in half.

The gesture reflects both stepped-up patrols by the Palestinian Authority's security forces, as well as an effort by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to curry favor with the U.S. without incurring the wrath of his right-wing supporters.

Mr. Netanyahu was able to cut back on checkpoints because there was little security risk, said Zalman Shoval, a foreign-policy aide to the prime minister and former Israeli ambassador to Washington.

'Little security risk'? Well, maybe. Until the next terror attack. What people forget is that in September 2000, it also seemed that there was 'little security risk' anywhere in Judea and Samaria - until the 'Palestinians' started shooting. The problem is that while the illness - terrorism - has been treated (through an IDF presence in most of Judea and Samaria, and not through 'Palestinian security forces' who could be overrun by Hamas in a minute if Hamas chose to do so), the underlying causes have not. The terror organizations remain in place, laying low until their time comes. And the 'Palestinian Authority' as well as Hamas continue to incite 'Palestinians' through their official media that one day they will drive all the Jews into the Sea and implement their version of the 'one-state solution.' As one of the 'Palestinians' interviewed in the article said, "it's still us or them."

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 3:54 PM