Security Council turns down separation fence issue

The briefing was given by the UN's envoy to the Middle East, Albert De Soto, and focused upon the disengagement.

UN members friendly to Israel complemented it for undertaking the Gaza Pullout. De Soto said that he thought the move was a "brave action".

The PLO's representative, Famia Barghouti, was the only one who spoke against Israel, criticizing the separation fence being built across the West Bank.

Israeli UN ambassador, Dan Gilerman, said in response that the fence was a "historical step" and a "first-rate means of terrorism prevention". The Security Council ambassadors also condemned the latest terrorist attacks in Israel, and showed concern for the situation in Lebanon.

UN sources added that the PLO representative withdrew her motion calling for an emergency meeting to discuss the separation fence after it became clear that such a proposal did not draw support at a time that Israel was disengaging its forces from Gaza.

Gillerman tells UN date of pullout not changed
Gillerman refuted statements Thursday that the government is considering pushing up its planned withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and the northern West Bank, emphasizing that the pullout would go ahead in mid-August as planned.

"We still hope in the end common sense will prevail and it will happen peacefully and quietly," Gillerman said. "Nothing will actually divert Israel from this initiative. That's exactly the way it's going to be."

Senior government officials earlier on Thursday announced that the government is considering moving up the mid-August withdrawal from the Gaza Strip, after three days of protest against the disengagement plan tied up tens of thousands of security forces.

Late Thursday, however, Israel Radio quoted a senior government official as saying that the disengagement plan will be executed as scheduled.

Deputy Prime Minister Ehud Olmert said he would favorably consider moving up the pullout in light of the protest. Some 20,000 police officers and soldiers were sent to Kfar Maimon to block protesters from marching to the Gaza Strip to reinforce settlers there.

"This confrontation saps a great deal of energy, disrupts the lives of all of the country's residents, doesn't lead to any advantage. So I would definitely weigh [an earlier withdrawal] favorably," Olmert told Israel Radio.

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