Israelis will be barred from the autonomous Jericho district in the West Bank when Palestine Liberation Organization Chairman Yasser Arafat visits there, according to the Israeli commander in charge of the West Bank.
Maj. Gen. Ilan Biran, who heads the Israeli army’s central command, said last week that the ban will affect all Israelis, with the exception of journalists covering the event.
He said that Route 90, the north-south highway that runs from Jerusalem to Tiberias, will be closed at Jericho, and that Israelis will be asked to use a dirt road that bypasses the Jericho area.
Biran explained that the travel restriction was being imposed to prevent clashes between Arafat supporters and Israelis seeking to attack the PLO leader.
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
