Netanyahu likely to allow food shipments into Gaza

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to promise during his meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama at the White House on Monday that Israel will remove all restrictions to the movement of foodstuffs into the Gaza Strip.

Meanwhile, four senior European Union officials sent a letter to Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman and Defense Minister Ehud Barak, calling on them to immediately and permanently open the crossings into the Gaza Strip for humanitarian aid.

Several days prior to the end of the Olmert administration, a decision was made to allow food to be delivered to the Gaza Strip without restrictions. The move came despite serious differences between the position of the Foreign and Defense ministries, and a series of embarrassing confrontations between Israel, on the one hand, and the U.S. and the European Union on the other. Even though a decision was made to allow the food to cross into Gaza, the defense establishment has not yet implemented it.

The issue of humanitarian aid transfers to the Hamas controlled Gaza Strip was one of the issues that the Netanyahu administration sought to resolve prior to the prime minister's visit to the United States. A discussion is scheduled to take place this week and a final decision will be made.

The disagreements between the Foreign and Defense ministries on the subject have gone on unabated, with the Foreign Ministry saying the restrictions on food should be lifted.

Lieberman has reportedly adopted the position of his ministry and will make a case for lifting the restrictions. His office refused to confirm this, insisting that his position will be determined by the recommendation of the defense establishment.

"The Foreign Ministry will present his position during the deliberations. There is a government decision, but there are other considerations and the recommendation of the defense establishment is critical among them," his office said in a statement.

In spite the ambiguity in Lieberman's stance, Netanyahu is inclined to adopt the recommendation of the Foreign Ministry and to order the immediate implementation of the government decision. Netanyahu is keen to present this to Obama as his first gesture of good will toward the Palestinians and that he is keeping up his promises to improve Palestinians' standard of living.

"The Prime Minister's position is favorable," a political source said in Jerusalem. "He is willing to give much greater leeway on humanitarian issues."