Abbas cancels Gaza trip after fresh Israeli incursion

Palestinian Prime Minister Mahmoud Abbas cancelled a visit to Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza today after Israeli tanks and bulldozers again moved into the town.

The new premier had been due to see the damage caused by Israel’s earlier five day occupation of the town.

Fifteen homes were demolished, thousands of trees were uprooted and the water and sewage systems were damaged, witnesses said.

Israeli forces had moved in to tackle Palestinian militants the army says regularly use the town to fire primitive rockets at the Israeli town of Sderot, less than half a mile away.

After pulling back to the outskirts of town yesterday, 15 Israeli bulldozers rumbled back into the industrial area of Beit Hanoun today “and started a new wave of destruction,” said Sofian Abu Zaida, chairman of the Palestinian liaison committee with Israel.

“We were surprised that the army had come back in,” he said, adding that Abbas had cancelled his trip as Palestinian leaders called on the army to withdraw.

Mohammed Dahlan, Abbas’ new security chief, had been due to accompany him on the visit. Dahlan decided to cancel the visit for security reasons, Zaida said.

“The army presence is not only an obstacle and an affront to (the visit) but an obstacle to any hope to achieve a lasting peace,” he said.

Yesterday’s partial withdrawal to the town outskirts came despite a wave of Palestinian suicide bombings that killed 12 bystanders.

The move was a hint that Israel might not carry out a large punitive military operation that would further weaken Abbas, whom Israel sees as a crucial negotiating partner.

The army said today that operations in Beit Hanoun were continuing.