Israel to propose ending Gaza blockade with EU-led aid plan
MARK WEISS in Jerusalem and ARTHUR BEESLEY in Brussels
The Irish Times – 17 July 2010
ISRAELI FOREIGN minister Avigdor Lieberman intends to present European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton with radical proposals next week designed to end Gaza’s dependence on Israel.
Hamas spokesman in Gaza, Sami Abu Zuhri, rejected the Israeli plan, saying Gaza remained part of the occupied Palestinian territories. “The plan to declare Gaza an independent entity, which the Israeli occupation is talking about from time to time, is a Zionist attempt to escape from the Jewish state responsibilities as an occupier,” he said