Protest in Gaza against Bush visit

Source: Al-Jazeera, 8-1-2008
Thousands of Palestinians in Gaza have gathered to protest against the visit of the US president to the occupied West Bank in a bid to push forward talks between "Israel" and the Palestinians.
The protesters gathered in Gaza City on Tuesday, saying that George Bush is indifferent to their condition.
Bush will not visit the territory as part of his tour of the Middle East which starts on Wednesday.
The protest was also against the ongoing "Israeli" siege of Gaza. Protesters carried 62 coffins symbolising those who have died because they have been unable to leave the area for medical treatment.
Humanitarian crisis
Al Jazeera's Mike Hanna said: "If the US president's motorcade ever travelled in Gaza City, he would see young school pupils and their parents and teachers demonstrating against the ongoing "Israeli" siege.
"He would see the medical supplies that have stopped coming in to Gaza, the shortage of fuel following the 'Israeli' decision to reduce the amount of fuel piped across the border and the periodic shutting down of the power stations.
"If George W Bush ever came to Gaza, he would see the ordinary people who do not fire Qassam missiles over the border into 'Israel'. He would experience the darkness of an existence that Gazans believe results from the collective punishment of a civilian population supposedly prohibited by international law."
Negotiating sessions since the gathering in Annapolis, Maryland, in late November have been marred by "Israeli" construction plans in disputed territory and violence in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.
Palestinian charge
Mustafa al-Barghouti, the head of the political movement the Palestinian National Initiative, blamed "Israel" for the deadlock at a news conference on Tuesday.
"'Israel's' impunity has increased after Annapolis, and we fear further 'Israeli' military escalation after Bush's visit," al-Barghouti told a news conference.
"Nothing will change and the situation will not improve as long as 'Israel' maintains its 562 checkpoints, continues the building of thousands of housing units in more than 800 settlements, and continues building the segregation wall and has not dismantled a single settlement."
"Israel" claims
Speaking to Al Jazeera on Monday, Mark Regev, spokesman for Olmert, defended the "Israeli" military operations.
He said: "We've got a situation where the Palestinian security services need to get their act together need to rebuilt, need to be retrained. They need to have their capabilities improved.
"If 'Israel', were to allow a security vaccum to develop in the West Bank ... who would enter that security vaccum? Only the extremists.
"And not only would innocent people be killed, but you would see the peace process be killed."
'Report suppressed'
In another development, Haaretz, the "Israeli" daily, has reported that the government had refused to publish a report containing full details of settlement constructions, including outposts and neighbourhoods built across the Green Line.
In response to a high court petition on the matter, the defense (war) ministry is arguing that publication would harm state security and "Israel's" foreign relations.
Haaretz and Maariv also said that the "Israeli" housing ministry was pushing for the construction of more than 1,000 units on lands "held by absentee Palestinians" from the Bethlehem area to expand the settlement of Har Homa.
Har Homa is built on confiscated Palestinian land in Jabal Abu Ghnaim in occupied East al-Quds.