Israeli settlers from the Golan Heights, the Jordan Valley, Judea, Samaria and Gaza launched on Tuesday a hunger strike in opposition to Prime Minister Ehud Barak's participation in the Camp David Summit, which began later the same day, according The Jerusalem Post.
According to the Israeli daily, the protesters fear that as a result of agreements that may be reached at the summit, their communities could be uprooted. Barak has said that most settlers from Judea and Samaria would remain in settlement blocs under Israeli sovereignty.
Situated just a few hundred meters from former interior minister MK Natan Sharansky's protest tent, opposite the Prime Minister's Office, the demonstration began with 30 protesters, with more expected to join.
Strike organizer Zvi Slomin, originally from Hebron, told the paper he feels that Barak is ignoring the public.
"The nation is not with him. It is time for him to be talking to the Jews of Israel, not to Arafat and Clinton," he said.
Slomin added that he does not believe that conflicts between Israel and Palestinians can be solved at the Camp David Summit.
Director-general of the foreign desk of the Council of Jewish Communities in Judea, Samaria and Gaza Yehudit Tayar had similar sentiments. "Barak is blindly running without realizing that his country is not running with him," she argued.
The settlers have been joined in their protest by sympathizers from different parts of the country. Spokesman for the Professors for a Strong Israel Dr. Ron Breiman is a Tel Aviv resident, but feels obliged to support the settlers' efforts. "I believe it's the same struggle on both sides of the line," he told the daily – Albawaba.com
© 2000 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
