Israel Begins to Dismantle Unofficial Settler Outposts
Israeli forces today dismantled at least one settler outpost near the Haggai settlement, south of the West Bank city of Hebron. Settlers blocked reporters from traveling down a gravel road but confirmed that soldiers had taken down the outpost, where they said only two Israeli families lived.

A second outpost, near a small settlement called Maale Hever, also near Hebron, was reported removed this morning. Later reports said 11 had been closed, though Asahel was not among them.

The main settler organization has vowed to fight the closing of the outposts. "It's not the right answer to the situation," said Yaniv Miles, 23, one of nine Israelis at an outpost called Avigail, south of Hebron, which along with Asahel, is among the outposts considered likely to be removed. He said the message to Palestinians would be: "You make problems, we'll give you what you want."

At a rally of his Labor Party last night, Mr. Ben-Eliezer announced his intention to issue an order this morning to evacuate 10 of the lonely outpost settlements, where providing security has become an increasing burden for the army.

"There are really no new settlements, but there are outposts that I inherited," he told the Labor Party rally. He said he expected 10 settlements to be closed down by noon today, adding, "And afterward I intend to take away more outposts."

Peace Now, a leftist organization that has kept close track of settlement building, in part with photographs from the air, disagrees with Mr. Ben-Eliezer's contention about settlement outposts. It released a report today saying that 44 outposts had been thrown up by settlers during Mr. Ben-Eliezer's term as defense minister.

Much of what was going on today with the outposts was political theater. Mr. Ben-Eliezer, who is chairman of the Labor Party and a potential challenger for prime minister, is trying to prove to his traditionally more dovish members that he is not a clone of the hawkish Likud Party incumbent, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon. The settlers, for their part, have thrown up a number of outposts with only a few families — or, sometimes none — as bargaining chips, to be sacrificed to keep their more substantial holdings.

Nevertheless, the issue is serious and has the potential for more violence. About 100,000 settlers were in the West Bank and Gaza Strip when the Oslo peace accords were signed in 1993. Nearly 200,000 are in settlements today.
http://www.nytimes.com/2002/07/01/international/middleeast/01MIDE.html