Playing politics at Gaza's expense
By Amos Harel, Haaretz
What is Acting Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's greatest fear right now - a fatal terror attack on the Gaza border, or a humanitarian disaster in the Gaza Strip? Neither, apparently. The real fear is that the dispute over the Karni crossing will lead to a clash with the U.S. government.
Less than a day after Israel said that serious warnings of planned terror attacks made Karni's reopening impossible, it nevertheless reopened the crossing yesterday, albeit briefly. And the turnabout occurred following an urgent meeting convened on Sunday by U.S. Ambassador to Israel Richard Jones.
Israel's fear of reopening Karni stems from a double trauma last January - an attack at Karni that killed six civilians, and another at the Rafah crossing (which Israel had reopened despite warnings of planned attacks) that killed five soldiers. A few weeks ago, the crossing was closed after a civilian employee thought she heard knocking underneath it, but searches uncovered no sign of a booby-trapped tunnel, and military professionals have since suggested that the government consider reopening the crossing. Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz, however, refused - apparently partly out of fear of an election-eve attack.
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