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CNN Live At Daybreak
Crisis in the Middle East: Defiant Settlers
Aired June 24, 2003 - 05:23 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: To the Middle East now, where Israel has been busy. It has been rounding up suspected Hamas members of the West Bank town of Hebron. Now, rounded up, about 130 Palestinians. Live to Jerusalem and Jerrold Kessel.
Good morning, Jerrold.
JERROLD KESSEL, CNN INTL. CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
And a very busy night for the Israeli military, the said one of their top infantry units was involved in that sweep in the West Bank town of Hebron. Also, in other towns in the West Bank, there are some 25 people detained and suspected involvement in terror activities, so the Israelis called it.
But in Hebron, the focus was on rooting out what the Israelis call the terror infrastructure of Hamas, the militant Islamic group. Just on Saturday night Israeli forces killed the Hamas leader in Hebron, Abdela Kawasme. Now a sweep that was directed at his family members as well as other suspected affiliates of the militant Islamic group.
All told, 130 picked up for questioning. And we'll see what happens, whether some are released early or whether others, charges are pressed against others. Or whether they are held or whether they are involved in terror activities. That Israel says that came out of Hebron. They are blaming Hamas for launching many of the suicide attacks of the last several months in which more than 50 Israelis were killed.
Major action by the Israeli army directed, it says, against Hamas' infrastructure.
Carol?
COSTELLO: Well, Jerrold, all morning long we've been awaiting word from Hamas of a possible ceasefire against the Israelis. Why is Israel doing this now?
KESSEL: That's a very good question. Israelis are stressing the operative nature that they say this is to forestall terror. But I don't think we can ignore the timing, indeed, we should not ignore the timing. The fact that it comes when the two sides in the Palestinian community, Hamas and the other radicals and the Palestinian Authority, we're told, are on the verge of agreement about a ceasefire by Hamas and the other radical groups, to stop, at least temporarily, their attacks on Israel. So, the question then, as you rightly say, why does Israel need to go in an act at this stage? Well, it could be argued in two directions. Either it is Israel saying, we're applying more pressure on Hamas and that's precisely why they're ready to go into a ceasefire. Because there's been so much pressure on them.
It could also be, though, that the Israelis are not all together happy with the nature of that ceasefire and they may not want it to work as effectively as the Palestinian Authority. Big question, to see how Hamas responds to this.
COSTELLO: It is all in how you look at it. Jerrold Kessel live from Jerusalem this morning.
Israeli settlements are of course a major stumbling block on that road map to peace. Jewish settlers appear to be establishing unauthorized outposts faster than the Israeli military can tear them down.
Our Jason Bellini takes us to one hilltop outpost in the West Bank.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JASON BELLINI, CNN INTL. CORRESPONDENT (voice over): And illegal outpost sounds like something more substantial in terms of architecture than what it really is.
Mickie Wassertiel, who founded this one only a week ago, sounds like a real nuisance for the Israeli army, should it come here to take him and his outpost down.
MICKIE WASSERTEIL, OUTPOST SETTLER: We are not going to walk. If they want to carry us, they will have to carry thousands of us.
BELLINI (on camera): There aren't thousands of you up here, right now. There are probably less than 20.
WASSERTEIL: They will right on time in here. We have our scouts and our information.
BELLINI: Up here on this hilltop these outpost settlers are living the hippie lifestyle, right wing hippies. Perhaps they're looking forward to the Israeli military coming up here to try to remove them, so they can make their point.
Their point, this land was given to the Jews by God. No Israeli leaders, they say, has the right to give it away for the sake of any peace agreement.
WASSERTEIL: That somebody has to say what is justice in this world and what is not justice. We didn't take any land from any country. Nobody was here till today.
BELLINI: On the next hill, in Bedhal (ph), which means house of God, a settlement sanctioned by the Israeli government some 25 years ago, is now home to three generations of Israelis. Today the 900 families living here, like Rachel Heller's, have a lot to loose should Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon decide to sacrifice this place in a final peace bid.
RACHEL HELLER, JEWISH SETTLER: If it is a matter of me being thrown out, and then you'll maybe give me peace? You know the joke they say, Arafat wants peace, a piece of this, and a piece of this, and a piece of this.
BELLINI: Well, fair enough, then let's say this was then made part of a Palestinian state, you could be a Palestinian citizen?
HELLER: One, I couldn't be a Palestinian citizen -- I would be interested in being a Palestinian citizen. But besides the fact that I couldn't live safely, and my children couldn't live safely under a Palestinian state in this area.
BELLINI (voice over): No peace agreement would be without pain for both sides, but for thousands of Israeli settlers even the possibility of losing land they consider to be theirs, is unthinkable.
BELLINI (on camera): But again, my question, if he says you gotta go, you gotta go, right?
HELLER: First of all, I don't think we'll come to that point. So, I don't foresee that point.
BELLINI: And if it does come to that point?
HELLER: I cannot accept that as a reality.
WASSERTEIL: If the army would succeed to remove us away from this place. We will be back here. We will be by tents and bricks, by -- by -- we will have to build it again. We will be here forever.
BELLINI: If these settlers are beginning to lose faith in their long-term patron, Ariel Sharon, they seem to be depending on a greater power from above.
Jason Bellini, CNN, the Telkhiam (ph) Outpost, on the West Bank.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired June 24, 2003 - 05:23 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL COSTELLO, CNN ANCHOR: To the Middle East now, where Israel has been busy. It has been rounding up suspected Hamas members of the West Bank town of Hebron. Now, rounded up, about 130 Palestinians. Live to Jerusalem and Jerrold Kessel.
Good morning, Jerrold.
JERROLD KESSEL, CNN INTL. CORRESPONDENT: Good morning, Carol.
And a very busy night for the Israeli military, the said one of their top infantry units was involved in that sweep in the West Bank town of Hebron. Also, in other towns in the West Bank, there are some 25 people detained and suspected involvement in terror activities, so the Israelis called it.
But in Hebron, the focus was on rooting out what the Israelis call the terror infrastructure of Hamas, the militant Islamic group. Just on Saturday night Israeli forces killed the Hamas leader in Hebron, Abdela Kawasme. Now a sweep that was directed at his family members as well as other suspected affiliates of the militant Islamic group.
All told, 130 picked up for questioning. And we'll see what happens, whether some are released early or whether others, charges are pressed against others. Or whether they are held or whether they are involved in terror activities. That Israel says that came out of Hebron. They are blaming Hamas for launching many of the suicide attacks of the last several months in which more than 50 Israelis were killed.
Major action by the Israeli army directed, it says, against Hamas' infrastructure.
Carol?
COSTELLO: Well, Jerrold, all morning long we've been awaiting word from Hamas of a possible ceasefire against the Israelis. Why is Israel doing this now?
KESSEL: That's a very good question. Israelis are stressing the operative nature that they say this is to forestall terror. But I don't think we can ignore the timing, indeed, we should not ignore the timing. The fact that it comes when the two sides in the Palestinian community, Hamas and the other radicals and the Palestinian Authority, we're told, are on the verge of agreement about a ceasefire by Hamas and the other radical groups, to stop, at least temporarily, their attacks on Israel. So, the question then, as you rightly say, why does Israel need to go in an act at this stage? Well, it could be argued in two directions. Either it is Israel saying, we're applying more pressure on Hamas and that's precisely why they're ready to go into a ceasefire. Because there's been so much pressure on them.
It could also be, though, that the Israelis are not all together happy with the nature of that ceasefire and they may not want it to work as effectively as the Palestinian Authority. Big question, to see how Hamas responds to this.
COSTELLO: It is all in how you look at it. Jerrold Kessel live from Jerusalem this morning.
Israeli settlements are of course a major stumbling block on that road map to peace. Jewish settlers appear to be establishing unauthorized outposts faster than the Israeli military can tear them down.
Our Jason Bellini takes us to one hilltop outpost in the West Bank.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JASON BELLINI, CNN INTL. CORRESPONDENT (voice over): And illegal outpost sounds like something more substantial in terms of architecture than what it really is.
Mickie Wassertiel, who founded this one only a week ago, sounds like a real nuisance for the Israeli army, should it come here to take him and his outpost down.
MICKIE WASSERTEIL, OUTPOST SETTLER: We are not going to walk. If they want to carry us, they will have to carry thousands of us.
BELLINI (on camera): There aren't thousands of you up here, right now. There are probably less than 20.
WASSERTEIL: They will right on time in here. We have our scouts and our information.
BELLINI: Up here on this hilltop these outpost settlers are living the hippie lifestyle, right wing hippies. Perhaps they're looking forward to the Israeli military coming up here to try to remove them, so they can make their point.
Their point, this land was given to the Jews by God. No Israeli leaders, they say, has the right to give it away for the sake of any peace agreement.
WASSERTEIL: That somebody has to say what is justice in this world and what is not justice. We didn't take any land from any country. Nobody was here till today.
BELLINI: On the next hill, in Bedhal (ph), which means house of God, a settlement sanctioned by the Israeli government some 25 years ago, is now home to three generations of Israelis. Today the 900 families living here, like Rachel Heller's, have a lot to loose should Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon decide to sacrifice this place in a final peace bid.
RACHEL HELLER, JEWISH SETTLER: If it is a matter of me being thrown out, and then you'll maybe give me peace? You know the joke they say, Arafat wants peace, a piece of this, and a piece of this, and a piece of this.
BELLINI: Well, fair enough, then let's say this was then made part of a Palestinian state, you could be a Palestinian citizen?
HELLER: One, I couldn't be a Palestinian citizen -- I would be interested in being a Palestinian citizen. But besides the fact that I couldn't live safely, and my children couldn't live safely under a Palestinian state in this area.
BELLINI (voice over): No peace agreement would be without pain for both sides, but for thousands of Israeli settlers even the possibility of losing land they consider to be theirs, is unthinkable.
BELLINI (on camera): But again, my question, if he says you gotta go, you gotta go, right?
HELLER: First of all, I don't think we'll come to that point. So, I don't foresee that point.
BELLINI: And if it does come to that point?
HELLER: I cannot accept that as a reality.
WASSERTEIL: If the army would succeed to remove us away from this place. We will be back here. We will be by tents and bricks, by -- by -- we will have to build it again. We will be here forever.
BELLINI: If these settlers are beginning to lose faith in their long-term patron, Ariel Sharon, they seem to be depending on a greater power from above.
Jason Bellini, CNN, the Telkhiam (ph) Outpost, on the West Bank.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
