The Israeli Cabinet decided Sunday to scale back its closure of the territories because of labor shortages in agriculture, housing and other sectors of the Israeli economy.
The closure orders — enacted last month in response to recent terrorist attacks on civilian and army targets — were modified during the weekly Cabinet meeting, when Israeli ministers authorized the daily entry into Israel of an additional 8,000 Palestinians from the territories and the autonomous districts of Jericho and the Gaza Strip.
The new authorizations bring to some 35,000 the total number of labor permits granted to Palestinians working within Israel.
Housing Minister Binyamin Ben-Eliezer, who has been buffeted by Israel’s worsening housing shortages, said he will press for a doubling of the 20,000 Palestinian workers from the territories that the government has so far authorized to work in the housing industry in Israel.
The gradual easing of the closure is also a response to the deteriorating economic situation in the territories and the autonomous areas.
As the situation currently stands, there is little work outside of Israel available to the Palestinians, particularly in Gaza, which has an unemployment rate of 50 percent. Cabinet ministers say they fear the dire employment situation may endanger the peace process.
Labor and Social Affairs Minister Ora Namir went on record during Sunday’s Cabinet session saying she preferred to permit the entry of Palestinian workers rather than those from Asia or Eastern Europe — provided that the Palestinians were not previously involved in acts of terrorism.
In the wake of the start of self rule in Gaza and Jericho, determining which Palestinians have a terrorist background is now at least partially the responsibility of the Palestinian police.
During Sunday’s Cabinet session, ministers expressed satisfaction with the functioning of the newly formed Palestinian police force.
But some also expressed concern that the serious shortage of funds confronting the autonomous districts, particularly where the needs of the police are concerned, might lead radical elements to take additional action against Israelis.
Foreign Minister Shimon Peres told the Cabinet that the United States was ready to provide some $5 million to help fill the Palestinian coffers.
But the PLO was insisting that the funds be transferred to the PLO’s Tunis headquarters — an unacceptable condition to many of the donor countries, which want strict accounting procedures for all funds donated to help cover costs in the self-rule zones.
As a result, the financial pressures facing the Palestinian police continue unresolved.
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