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The border fence between Egypt and the Gaza Strip. (Reuters)
Last update - 17:16 06/02/2008
Israel to begin work on separation fence along border with Egypt
By Barak Ravid, Haaretz Correspondent
Tags: UNIFIL, Gaza Strip, Lebanon

Israel will begin promoting a proposal to build a separation barrier that will separate it from Egypt, the cabinet decided Wednesday during a meeting attended by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, Defense Minister Ehud Barak, Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni and the heads of the defense establishment.

During the meeting, the officials in attendance discussed the breach in the border between Egypt and the Gaza Strip, which was compromised after Palestinian militants blew holes in a section of the wall separating the two territories on January 23, prompting hundreds of thousands of Gazans to pour across the frontier.

The breach raised security concerns within Israel's defense establishment that Gazans who had entered Egypt through the breach could infiltrate Israel with relative ease through the open Israel-Egypt border.
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It was decided at Wednesday's meeting that in accordance with a proposal previously submitted by Barak, a fence separating Israel from Egypt will initially be constructed in two small sections, one near Eilat and another near Nitzana.

The officials also discussed the Egyptian request to double the amount of security personnel stationed along the border with Israel. On Tuesday, Haaretz reported that Livni proposed that Israel should comply with the Egyptian request.

Meanwhile, an interministerial task force established a few weeks ago is examining the possibility of stationing an international force in the Gaza Strip.

Among other things, the panel is analyzing the similarities and differences between Lebanon and Gaza and assessing the effectiveness of UNIFIL, the multinational UN force in Lebanon.

Most of the preparatory work on the issue is being conducted by the Israel Defense Forces Planning Directorate. The task force is headed by Colonel Assaf Orion, the head of the directorate's foreign relations unit, who is also in charge of liaison with UNIFIL and other multinational forces in the area, such as the American-led force in Sinai. The panel includes representatives of the foreign and defense ministries and the National Security Council.

According to one defense official, the task force's goal is to prepare options for the government should one of two events occur. The first is a major ground operation in which Israel would reconquer parts of Gaza, since afterward, it might want to transfer control of the territory to a multinational force. The second is final-status negotiations with the Palestinian Authority, since the security arrangements under any deal might include a multinational force in Palestine.

The panel is examining various models for an international force, with particular emphasis on UNIFIL. For instance, it is considering whether the expanded mandate UNIFIL received following the Second Lebanon War would be suitable for Gaza, or whether a different mandate would be needed, and what implications such a force would have for Israel's security needs and its freedom of action in Gaza.

In both the Defense Ministry and the Foreign Ministry, opinions are divided over both the value of UNIFIL's mandate and how effectively it has been implemented. Foreign Ministry Director General Aaron Abramovitz, for instance, recently told French officials that "UNIFIL is not doing the job for which it was established, a fact that makes Israel question the value of employing a multinational force in Gaza."

The prevailing view in both the defense establishment and the diplomatic corps is that as long as Hamas controls Gaza, no country would consent to send armed forces to the Strip.

Thus a multinational force would be an option only if Israel either reconquered Gaza or a popular uprising against Hamas enabled PA President Mahmoud Abbas to regain control there. And Israeli officials view the latter as extremely unlikely.

Another question is whether Egypt would agree to a multinational force in Gaza. It would have no problem with unarmed observers, but Israel worries that it would object to armed troops with enforcement powers.

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  • International force for Gaza
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  • Hamas: Int'l force in Gaza Strip will be met with 'shells and rockets'
  • Foreign Min. backs Egyptian request to double its forces on Gaza border
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      1.   international force 04:04  |  Shmuelshachor 06/02/08
      2.   What! How can you allow idiots to police Gaza? 04:36  |  The Archives 06/02/08
      3.   War against terrorists. 07:35  |  Harold Lane 06/02/08
      4.   IDF Not Competent To Decide 07:40  |  Tod Zuckerman 06/02/08
      5.   Remember that happened to the UN observers in Lebanon 07:44  |  Natallie Durson 06/02/08
      6.   why should the UN pay for Israel`s crimes? 09:37  |  Leona 06/02/08
      7.   if patrolled by int forced, israel gets exposed 09:44  |  truth 06/02/08
      8.   # 6 why should Leona write all these lies ? 10:17  |  Marietta 06/02/08
      9.   The weakness of Israel dramatically demonstrated 10:18  |  Clickfool 06/02/08
      10.   UNIFIL assisted kidnapping of Israeli soldiers by Hezbs 10:33  |  Absolute Sweden 06/02/08
      11.   UNIFIL so far proved to be less than forceful in fulfilling its 10:38  |  Marwan مروان خوري 06/02/08
      12.   RESISTANCE IS THE KEY 10:42  |  indrajaya 06/02/08
      13.   First IDF needs to wipe out Hamas and other terrorists, then UN 10:42  |  Marwan مروان خوري 06/02/08
      14.   The IDF Must Be The ONLY Force In Gaza 10:42  |  Yishai Kohen 06/02/08
      15.   Without NATO lead UN troops will be hiding in their bases 10:45  |  Marwan مروان خوري 06/02/08
      16.   #5 Natallie Durson. What exactly happened in Lebanon 10:48  |  Marwan مروان خوري 06/02/08
      17.   buffoonery from buffoons once more 10:49  |  v hardman 06/02/08
      18.   The international force should be in the West Bank. 10:56  |  Michael 06/02/08
      19.   a story 10:56  |  atilla karagözoğlu 06/02/08
      20.   #6 and #7 Natallie Durson running out of fake names to use 10:58  |  Marwan مروان خوري 06/02/08
      21.   #12 indrajaya,Resistance is the key to liberating Gaza from Hamas 11:03  |  Marwan مروان خوري 06/02/08
      22.   let say I come there with an ugly great army ! 11:04  |  Atilla Karagözoğlu 06/02/08
      23.   Marwan is correct in all of his posts 11:08  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 06/02/08
      24.   #9 for Clickfool Israel just cannot win. If they go into Gaza he 11:09  |  Marwan مروان خوري 06/02/08
      25.   Force for everyone 11:20  |  ANDREW 06/02/08
      26.   So, some Israelis sit around a Bong, and.... 11:23  |  Johnboy 06/02/08
      27.   Israeli terrorism must be halted first 11:24  |  Johan Odin 06/02/08
      28.   # 21, MARWAN 11:25  |  indrajaya 06/02/08
      29.   Why not an international force in All Occupied Areas? 11:25  |  El-Birawi 06/02/08
      30.   #29, Israel is a sovereign state 11:41  |  Cipora Julianna Kohn 06/02/08
      31.   Odin. Israel gave Gazans the territory 11:52  |  Margie in Tel Aviv 06/02/08
      32.   Johan Odin #27, what happened to you anyway? 12:09  |  Johnny 06/02/08
      33.   Leona #6 why should the UN pay for Sudan`s crimes? 12:12  |  S 06/02/08
      34.   GUYS ! HAMAS IS NOT AN ANGLE TOO 12:19  |  ... 06/02/08
      35.   SUCH A LUCKY BOTH PEOPLE ARE 12:21  |  ... 06/02/08
      36.   KENYA ! AN AFRICAN COUNTRY ! A LOT GENODICE HAPPENNING TODAY 12:23  |  ... 06/02/08
      37.   UN troops will do nothing 12:25  |  Jaber 06/02/08
      38.   The UNIFIL cannot afford to become idiots anymore! 12:35  |  The Archives 06/02/08
      39.   #30 The territories are not sovereign Israeli soil 12:36  |  Johnboy 06/02/08
      40.   UN cannot afford to be idiots anymore! 12:42  |  The Archives 06/02/08
      41.   Margie, You are the one confused 12:49  |  Johan Odin 06/02/08
      42.   Easier to set up a string of brothels on the border. 13:25  |  Stephen. 06/02/08
      43.   GUYS ! I AM TAKING THE CONTROL NOW, 13:33  |  ... 06/02/08
      44.   WE ADORE OUR GREAT KING AND MILITARY GENERAL ATİLLA KARAGÖZOĞLU 13:40  |  IDF LADY SOLDIERS 06/02/08
      45.   Odin 13:53  |  Margie in Tel Aviv 06/02/08
      46.   Delusional Leftists 14:02  |  Frank 06/02/08
      47.   # 16 - Marwan 14:05  |  Natallie Durson 06/02/08
      48.   Israel Bombed UNIFIL 14:15  |  Yaakov Sullivan 06/02/08
      49.   Johnboy # 39 Sovereignty 14:18  |  Jeff Northridge 06/02/08
      50.   indrajaya, resistance is a lie 14:22  |  Joe Sittizen 06/02/08
      51.   Arabs bombed UNIFIL 14:29  |  Malcolm Levy 06/02/08
      52.   # 19 Atilla...stay out of East LA 14:30  |  Lynn 06/02/08
      53.   Delusional Rightist 46 14:32  |  Michael 06/02/08
      54.   Until now,Mubarak had been saying that fatah should be in charge 14:33  |  lakshmi 06/02/08
      55.   Are some Israeli policy makers waking up? 14:36  |  Tosefta 06/02/08
      56.   # 48 Yaakov Sullivan....yes they did 14:39  |  Lynn 06/02/08
      57.   Forget about an international force 14:52  |  Tosefta 06/02/08
      58.   No Chance 14:53  |  Jeff Northridge 06/02/08
      59.   # 50, JOE CITIZEN 14:55  |  indrajaya 06/02/08
      60.   # 55 Tosefta....doesn`t it all come down 14:59  |  Lynn 06/02/08
      61.   # 28 Indy...we KNOW who the enemy of humanity 15:04  |  Lynn 06/02/08
      62.   UNIFIL troops killed by car bombs in Lebanon 15:06  |  Lynn 06/02/08
      63.   #59 Indy...which leaves one conclusion 15:09  |  Lynn 06/02/08
      64.   Lynn, that is a Lie 15:10  |  Yaakov Sullivan 06/02/08
      65.   NATO Force in Gaza is a Better Idea 15:23  |  Jane 06/02/08
      66.   Another Fence - Is That All They Can Come Up With? 15:26  |  Jane 06/02/08
      67.   When you adopt a policy (Lynn #60) 15:30  |  Tosefta 06/02/08
      68.   # 63, LYNN 15:37  |  indrajaya 06/02/08
      69.   Iakshmi # 54 Egypt`s Position 15:41  |  Jeff Northridge