(AP/Washington Times) Ravi Nessman - A day after Prime Minister Sharon said Jewish settlements in Gaza would have to be removed, the settlers threw open their heavily guarded electric gates Tuesday to show they are just ordinary suburban folk who want peace - but will never leave this land. In Netzer Hazani, Anita Tucker, 58, a New York native who has lived in Gaza for 28 years, said the community was deeply affected by the killing of three of its members, including its rabbi, by Palestinian attackers. But she also insisted the Gaza settlements are a lovely and quiet place to live, far safer than suicide bomb-plagued Jerusalem. "It's a town. I never understood the word settlement. It's a town like suburban Long Island, like suburban London," she said. Even if Israel did leave the Gaza settlements, it would not be enough, said Wael Yusuf, a Palestinian police officer. Israel would also have to give back the West Bank, Jerusalem, Tel Aviv, Haifa, and every other square inch of land it inhabits, he said.
2004-02-04 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive