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Is It Time to End the Temporary International Force in Hebron?
(Jerusalem Post) Herb Keinon - Last week in Paris, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he would weigh growing calls to evict the Temporary International Force in Hebron (TIPH) after 21 years. "With regard to the continuation of TIPH, we will take a decision in December," Netanyahu said. The 64-member observer force - financed and staffed by Italy, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and Turkey - observes the conditions under which the Palestinians live in the section of Hebron under Israeli military rule and reports on incidents of conflict. "It would not be complicated to terminate the presence of TIPH," said Dore Gold, former Foreign Ministry director-general and now president of the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs. The observer force "is somewhat outdated," maintains "marginal utility," and "tends to get into fights with the Jewish community living in Hebron. It raises questions of why it should continue. International peace-keeping forces and monitors have generally been a disaster in the Middle East. They run from their positions the moment they are threatened, or in the case of TIPH, instead of maintaining strict neutrality, they identify completely with the Palestinian side and therefore they do not contribute to security and under such conditions are best removed."