PM orders Gaza closed to Israelis until pullout ends

[Scurrilous]

http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/599537.html

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"In a step seen as a watershed moment in his disengagement plan, Prime Minister Ariel Sharon Wednesday morning ordered the Gaza Strip closed to Israeli visitors, declaring it a closed military area in order to blunt plans by anti-pullout activists to flood the Strip with protesters.

The order effectively closes the Strip to non-resident Istraelis until the end of the disengagement, as opposed to a temporary closure imposed two weeks ago to allow Israeli security forces to evacuate a hotel where anti-pullout activists had barricaded themselves.

The order also grants GOC Central Command chief Major General Yair Naveh the authority to determine the exact date of declaring the northern Samaria a sealed military zone for the evacuation of four settlements under the disengagement."

<snip>

"On Wednesday morning, police began turning away non-resident cars from Kissufim Junction, the main entry point for the Katif bloc of settlements. This reportedly created traffic jams of visiting vehicles seeking to enter the Strip. Gush Katif residents plan a protest march at 12.30 P.M. to the Kissufim Junction and block the road for movement of security forces."