WITHDRAWAL FROM WEST BANK--AT LEAST 3 TO 5 YEARS OFF? That is the implication from statements by Barak as well as Rafi Eitam. Hopefully, Barak's statements will carry more weight than Abbas' promises, Bush's guarantees, and Rice's pressure. The summaries below are from today's Daily Alert.

Barak: Missile Defense Is Precondition for Pullout - Amos Harel

Defense Minister Ehud Barak considers the development of technological defenses against rocket fire on the home front a precondition for any significant withdrawal from the West Bank. Such a withdrawal would put Israel's main population centers in Kassam rocket range of the Palestinian Authority. Therefore, Israel must first develop and deploy an effective anti-missile system - a process that is expected to take three to five years. (Ha'aretz) [emphasis added]


See also Eitan: Don't Even Consider West Bank Withdrawal Yet

As long as Israel does not possess defense systems against high-trajectory weapons, it should not even consider withdrawing from territories in the West Bank, security cabinet member and Pensioners party chairman Rafi Eitan said Wednesday. Eitan said hills and areas opposite the Judean desert were vital for Israel's security. "We should not even speak about the possibility of giving them up," he told Israel Radio. "As long as there are threats from the east, including Ahmadinejad in Iran, al-Qaeda and Shi'ite groups in Lebanon and Syria, Israel must not relinquish territories that are vital for its security." (Jerusalem Post)

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