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Last update - 19:56 02/06/2009
Barak: We didn't bow to Obama on West Bank outpost evacuation
By Yossi Verter and Barak Ravid, Haaretz Correspondents, and Agencies
Tags: Settlements, Obama 

Defense Minister Ehud Barak said Thursday that pressure from the United States did not bring about the evacuation by Israeli security Forces of an illegal West Bank outpost earlier in the day.

"There is no connection to American pressure, and I have clarified this to the settler leaders," Barak said.

The evacuation of the outpost of Maoz Esther on Thursday morning came only a day after Defense Ministry sources told Haaretz that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Barak have agreed on a plan to evacuate illegal outposts in the West Bank, mainly those located on Palestinian land.
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This was part of the "price" Netanyahu paid Obama in exchange for the latter's statements about Iran's nuclearization, the sources said.

But Barak added: "The subject of unauthorized outposts is an obligation of Israeli society to itself... a society that desires life and preserves the law cannot accept attempts by citizens to undermine the nature of the state."

In an apparent nod to diplomatic pressure exerted by the Obama administration, Israeli security forces evacuated the West Bank settlement outpost of Maoz Esther on Thursday morning.

Security forces hauled away seven metal containers converted to cabins during the evacuation. Several youths were at the camp but there was no violence, said police spokesman Mickey Rosenfeld.

On Wednesday, the sources said Barak intended to dismantle a number of outposts out of 26 illegal ones. "It is up to him entirely, and on the time and circumstances he sees fit. Netanyahu won't make difficulties. They're in sync," a source said.

Ministers, including those from Likud, said Wednesday that Netanyahu probably promised United States President Barack Obama in their meeting that Israel would dismantle outposts soon.

Barak told the Yesha settlers council Wednesday that Israel will dismantle the illegal outposts by force if dialogue proves fruitless. Barak is trying to reach an agreement with the settlers on dismantling the outposts.

"We will dismantle the illegal outposts," Barak said. "If it won't be through understanding, it will be done quickly and by force."

Evacuating illegal outposts in the West Bank is expected to be the Netanyahu government's first gesture toward Obama and the Palestinian Authority.

This is part of the "price" Netanyahu paid Obama in exchange for the latter's statements about Iran's nuclearization, the sources said.

Sources close to Barak said Wednesday that the first outposts are expected to be evacuated within a few weeks - either with the settlers' agreement or by force.

Before going to Washington, Netanyahu and chief of policy planning Ron Dermer drafted the new government's policy principals. The document, which Netanyahu issued for distribution only after meeting Obama, says Israel is ready to evacuate the illegal outposts. As for stopping construction in the settlements the document was more cagey, saying the settlements were not an obstacle to peace and that the evacuation of settlements in Gaza only led to the establishment of a Hamas terror base in the Gaza Strip.

During the meeting, held at the minister's bureau in Tel Aviv, Barak went on to say, "We can't compromise on law enforcement. A sovereign country that seeks life must enforce its laws and implement the state's authority over its citizens."

He said the new Israeli government would take action against the outposts, not because it was told to do so by the United States, but because Israel "is a state of law."

Barak added that the illegal outposts cause extensive damage to Israel in the international arena, and even weaken the settler movement. Therefore, he said, the problem of the unauthorized outposts should be addressed first and foremost.

The meeting, called by the Yesha Council, included several settler demands. The council asked that the construction in the West Bank settlements be unfrozen, that Jewish communities in the West Bank be afforded conditions for a normal lifestyle and that certain security concerns be addressed.

Maoz Esther resident Avraham Sandak said 40 people had been living at the hilltop site northeast of Ramallah and they would start work immediately to replace the demolished buildings.

"We hope to sleep here tonight and we hope, with God's help, to rebuild it, not like before but bigger," he said.

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      1.   Dismantling "outposts" while expanding other settlements... 04:09  |  peacelover 21/05/09
      2.   What we have been saying it is coming true 04:14  |  arik 21/05/09
      3.   PLEASING DADDY 04:17  |  Fortuna Benmayor 21/05/09
      4.   Obama gets a lesson in Israeli arithmetic 04:24  |  Natallie Durson 21/05/09
      5.   Hollow Meaningless Gesture 05:48  |  Joe L. 21/05/09
      6.   All the Israeli WB settlements are illegal! 05:51  |  Le Corbeau 21/05/09
      7.   How Soon will the Bibi Government Collapse? Any Bets? 06:11  |  Monitor 21/05/09
      8.   All settlements are illegal! 07:04  |  Laura 21/05/09
      9.   Israeli stubbrness and contempt 07:09  |  Laura 21/05/09
      10.   Fairness and hatred. 07:15  |  Mario Sala 21/05/09
      11.   #4 Natalie Durson 07:21  |  Jim 21/05/09
      12.   What "Palestinian Land"? 07:24  |  Baruch Gold 21/05/09
      13.   What the h*ll...?! 07:41  |  Esther 21/05/09
      14.   What a joke! 07:42  |  Steve Beikirch 21/05/09
      15.   Bibi tell us. When will we see this fine gesture? 07:45  |  Lou Medel 21/05/09
      16.   #6, Le Corbeau 07:48  |  Chris 21/05/09
      17.   Fortuna #3: "...housing units somewhere in the West Bank..." 07:53  |  Esther 21/05/09
      18.   Oooo, you make me all tingly Nat... 07:58  |  BBSNews 21/05/09
      19.   Le Corbeau, don`t confuse them with facts... 08:14  |  BBSNews 21/05/09
      20.   BIBI ADMITING IT ALL FOR ONCE 08:30  |  VIPER 21/05/09
      21.   STOP its ever enough for these 08:33  |  lily 21/05/09
      22.   A farce and a fabrication 08:38  |  Tzfonit 21/05/09
      23.   they are "ALL" on Palestinian Land. 09:08  |  Labhras 21/05/09
      24.   Bibi is fooling himself and the Israelis 09:20  |  Westwell 21/05/09
      25.   Moving deck chairs on the Titanic 09:25  |  alan 21/05/09
      26.   A public relations exercise that will fracture his coalition 09:31  |  Mark Leaman 21/05/09
      27.   For each evacuated outpost, the Iranian regime should.... 09:34  |  Swiss (Dino) 21/05/09
      28.   Empty gesture. 09:50  |  Michael 21/05/09
      29.   sugar coated 09:56  |  BazMann 21/05/09
      30.   IT IS NOTHING BUT A LIE 09:57  |  indrajaya 21/05/09
      31.   just barely in office and already making concessions to obama; 10:17  |  glenna 21/05/09
      32.   Swiss Dino, Better look elsewhere for positive reinforcement 10:23  |  Tzfonit 21/05/09
      33.   All Outposts Are Illegal 10:23  |  Paul Fingerhut 21/05/09
      34.   dismantle 10:27  |  rm 21/05/09
      35.   Los Angeles to Mexico as a goodwill jesture? 10:35  |  lily 21/05/09
      36.   Loud and Clear: No Palestinian State, now or ever 10:42  |  Baruch Gold 21/05/09
      37.   westwell as opposed to rational debate you indulge 10:46  |  harzion 21/05/09
      38.   what other country in the world gives up its land for peace??? 10:47  |  Sarah 21/05/09
      39.   go back to bed and turn out the light #12;your sickening and so 10:48  |  glenna 21/05/09
      40.   this shows weakness 10:50  |  tuvia raviv 21/05/09
      41.   #12 tingly,as bibi makes you tingly,you make me sick! 10:52  |  glenna 21/05/09
      42.   News of 2009 10:55  |  Axel 21/05/09
      43.   Iran is as much threat to US as to Israel and Israel pays for US 11:06  |  Absolute Sweden 21/05/09
      44.   Giving up the illegal settlements is a test 11:11  |  Gregor 21/05/09
      45.   #13 Bl--dy Bull Sh-t (BBS) News 11:14  |  The Prophet 21/05/09
      46.   to Fortuna Benmayor #3 11:20  |  zeev 21/05/09
      47.   # 27 lily 11:21  |  Axel 21/05/09
      48.   # 24 Tzfonit, you are missing the point..... 11:25  |  Swiss (Dino) 21/05/09
      49.   They bomb civilains in Afghanistan, and teach us math 11:25  |  Israeli citizen 21/05/09
      50.   Remove all illegal settlements 11:27  |  Matty Groves 21/05/09
      51.   #24, Tzfonit 11:28  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 21/05/09
      52.   #30 Sarah - If you really want to know 11:31  |  JW 21/05/09
      53.   Fort Benmayor - an ideas man. 11:35  |  Razi 21/05/09
      54.   "Normal lifestyle" 11:36  |  Apa 21/05/09
      55.   to lily #27 11:38  |  zeev 21/05/09
      56.   axel on "civilised state" 11:38  |  erwin honigstein 21/05/09
      57.   Civilized Teuton Axelchen preaching on Israel 11:40  |  Absolute Sweden 21/05/09
      58.   It`s all smoke and mirrors. 11:40  |  Razi 21/05/09
      59.   Tfonit #24 11:42  |  Esther 21/05/09
      60.   But, Sarah #30... it`s not our land that we have to give up... 11:47  |  Esther 21/05/09
      61.   Esther, he already has. 11:51  |  Tzfonit 21/05/09
      62.   Yes indeed, Absolute #35, "something is wrong here"... 11:53  |  Esther 21/05/09
      63.   Shalom Cipora. 11:53  |  Tzfonit 21/05/09
      64.   west bank evacuation 12:00  |  philip 21/05/09
      65.   Good first step. Congratulations! 12:06  |  Ivar 21/05/09
      66.   #49, Esther 12:09  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 21/05/09
      67.   to Sarah #33 12:11  |  zeev 21/05/09
      68.   Dino, you still haven`t gotten rid of all your falacies. 12:11  |  Tzfonit 21/05/09
      69.   Harzion rationality: My way or the Highway 12:21  |  Westwell 21/05/09
      70.   # 41 zeev 12:28  |  Swiss (Dino) 21/05/09
      71.   # 44 israeli citizen 12:35  |  Axel 21/05/09
      72.   Revisionist History at its best 12:35  |  Paul 21/05/09
      73.   general petreaus`s adviser 12:45  |  harzion 21/05/09
      74.   zeev #41,all too true that militant Hamas is an Israeli creation 12:50  |  Esther 21/05/09
      75.   Israel`s favorite hobby: Insult everyones`s intelligence. 12:51  |  Andreas 21/05/09
      76.   # 52 harzion 13:00  |  Axel 21/05/09
      77.   Barak is trying to reach an agreement with the settlers ... 13:05  |  Axel 21/05/09
      78.   Security forces evacuate West Bank outpost of Ma`oz Esther (Army 13:16  |  Esther 21/05/09
      79.   axel "israel is a state where illegality is government policy" 13:22  |  harzion 21/05/09
      80.   axel i think you are shameless posting abuse on a jewish site 13:25  |  harzion 21/05/09
      81.   Needle in a haysack, ALL settlements must be removed or 13:29  |  Nour 21/05/09
      82.   Awwwww so sweet!!!! 13:47  |  Dani 21/05/09
      83.   to lily #30 - 2nd try 13:49  |  zeev 21/05/09
      84.   the irony of terminology in greedy nationality 13:50  |  semi tischfein 21/05/09
      85.   to Sarah #33 - 2nd try 13:51  |  zeev 21/05/09
      86.   BIG DEAL -its nothing and they keep stealing their water as well 14:22  |  Tcherkessi 21/05/09
      87.   #14 Beikirch - Allow me to answer 15:16  |  *BEN JABO 21/05/09
      88.   Esther & Swiss (Dino) 15:38  |  zeev 21/05/09
      89.   Cipora ^^ don* t get the news do you? 15:48  |  American in NY 21/05/09
      90.   # 72, History is still being (re)written 16:43  |  David 21/05/09
      91.   To Esther 16:51  |  Sam Soul 21/05/09
      92.   the israeli right 17:05  |  divide by 0 21/05/09
      93.   Baruch Gold #36 17:17  |  jennifer 21/05/09
      94.   To Divide by 0 18:08  |  S* 21/05/09
      95.   axel 18:12  |  bar kochva 21/05/09
      96.   Tzfonit #68 re your fallacies about friends and enemies 18:13  |  American in NY 21/05/09
      97.   To Sarah 18:15  |  Sam Soul 21/05/09
      98.   dismantle 18:21  |  ehud 21/05/09
      99.   the united nations and human rights 20:20  |  amnon reshef 21/05/09
      100.   usual zionist hypocrisy 21:23  |  muslim-- 21/05/09
      101.   Mario Sala #10 difference between the 2 21:31  |  muslim-- 21/05/09
      102.   to Tzfonit #68 - 2nd try 00:47  |  zeev 22/05/09
      103.   to bar kochva #95 - 2nd try 00:50  |  zeev 22/05/09
      104.   to lily #35 - the full & correct version (3rd) 00:57  |  zeev 22/05/09
      105.   If not bowing, then why not a month or year ago? 01:26  |  Fortuna Benmayor 22/05/09
      106.   amnon reshef on the UN 02:20  |  Roo 22/05/09
      107.   Let them be happy 02:59  |  Brod 22/05/09
      108.   Brod Nixon was a notorious antisemite... 04:17  |  BBSNews 22/05/09
      109.   TO BEN JABO# 87 08:08  |  Steve Beikirch 22/05/09
      110.   to David #90 - 3rd try 10:28  |  zeev 22/05/09
      111.   BBSNews 14:03  |  Brod 22/05/09
      112.   #109 Beikirch - I did, you`re incapable 16:02  |  *BEN JABO 22/05/09
      113.   #108 BBSNEWS.nut 16:04  |  *BEN JABO 22/05/09
      114.   Ben Gurion once said............... 23:43  |  Antonio da Silva 22/05/09
      115.   to A. da Silva #114 - at long last 04:19  |  zeev 23/05/09
      116.   to harzion #80 - 8th try 11:04  |  zeev 23/05/09
      117.   TO BEN JABO# 112 05:58  |  Steve Beikirch 24/05/09
      118.   to harzion #80 - 9th try 09:19  |  zeev 24/05/09
      119.   Oh dear. Hot off the press 17:53  |  Johnboy 24/05/09
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