Israelis, Palestinians OK Gaza Border Deal

By ANNE GEARAN

JERUSALEM – Israel and the Palestinians have reached a deal on Gaza border crossings, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice announced Tuesday.

The agreement was reached in marathon negotiations overseen personally by Rice who stayed a day longer than planned in Jerusalem to shepherd the deal to a conclusion.

Rice praised the deal at a news conference as a “big step forward” in Israeli-Palestinian relations.

Under the deal, the Gaza-Egypt border would tentatively open Nov. 25, and construction of a Gaza seaport would begin, she said. Palestinians would be able to travel between the West Bank and Gaza in bus convoys through Israel.

An agreement gives the Palestinians control over a border for the first time and provides a much-needed boost to the shattered Gaza economy. It also marks an important breakthrough for the sides, who had failed to capitalize on the momentum created by the withdrawal.

It also strengthens Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas ahead of Jan. 25 parliament elections and help him fend off a strong challenge by the Islamic militant group Hamas.

Negotiators met throughout the night at the Jerusalem hotel where Rice was staying, with Rice shuttling between the sides. On Tuesday morning, she met with Israeli Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz to finalize the details.

Israel and the Palestinians had been unable to agree on control of the border crossings since Israel’s withdrawal from Gaza in September. The Palestinians want free movement in and out of territory they control. Israel wants security guarantees that militants and weapons won’t enter the area.

Rice and Mideast envoy James Wolfensohn wanted Israel and Palestinian leaders to use Israel’s unilateral withdrawal from the Gaza Strip last summer as traction for tougher peace negotiations down the road.

Cooperation had flagged in recent weeks, and Rice’s two days of meetings in Jerusalem and the West Bank were meant to push the two sides to settle some pressing disputes over Palestinian freedom of movement in and out of the territory they now control.

Wolfensohn, who has been overseeing talks on six key issues during the past five months, expressed frustration Monday, saying it was difficult for him to understand why the sides had been unable to make more progress. Rice’s arrival appeared to provide the needed push for the sides to intensify their talks.

As she has done three other times this year, Rice shuttled Monday between Jerusalem and the Palestinian headquarters in Ramallah with a mix of praise and pressure for both sides. She saw Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon over breakfast, then held a long one-on-one session with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in the old offices where Abbas’ predecessor, Yasser Arafat, holed up before his death last year.

The key dispute had been over arrangements at the Gaza-Egypt border, from which Israel withdrew as part of the pullout. Israel wanted to be able to monitor traffic at the border via closed circuit TV cameras, and to have veto powers. The Palestinians rejected that demand, and it was not immediately clear how the dispute was resolved.

Under the deal, Israel would allow Palestinians to move between the West Bank and Gaza, traveling in army-escorted bus convoys through Israel. International negotiators had also demanded that Israel commit to a minimum number of trucks to be able to leave Gaza every day via a cargo crossing between the coastal strip and Israel.

The Palestinians say reopening the crossings is essential to rebuilding Gaza’s shattered economy after three decades of Israeli control, especially with the harvest season approaching. Abbas has said he won’t reopen the border with Egypt without an agreement.