'Temporary road to Rawabi could become permanent obstacle'

Defense sources say route would not become permanent; MK Eldad warns against putting Palestinian vehicles too close to Jewish residences.

By TOVAH LAZAROFF
Al Rawabi 311 (photo credit: Marc Israel Sellem)
Al Rawabi 311
(photo credit: Marc Israel Sellem)
The Knesset’s Land of Israel Lobby warned on Wednesday that plans for a temporary trucking route to the Palestinian city of Rawabi in the Binyamin region of the West Bank could lay the groundwork for a permanent road.
Defense sources rejected the claim, explaining that a civil administration committee debated on Tuesday the possibility of creating a temporary trucking route to Rawabi that would go through Area C, which is under full Israeli control.
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The sources said that no decision was likely to be reached, and it could be a week or two before a decision is made on the matter.
The defense sources stressed that this route was not, and would not, become the main road to the city – and that it would be used solely to help construction trucks reach their respective destinations there.
But Lobby co-chairman MK Aryeh Eldad (National Union), warned that the civil administration was trying to pull the wool over everyone’s eyes. He warned that it will start as a temporary road, but end up as a permanent one.
The road, he added, is also a security risk because it places Palestinian vehicles very close to Jewish homes in nearby settlements. It also cuts through the Binyamin region, dividing it.
Lastly, he said, the approval procedure should be public, not debated behind closed doors.