Israel Delays Transfer of Kalkilya in West Bank

Israel will delay this week’s planned hand-over of the West Bank town of Kalkilya to Palestinian security forces, Israeli political sources said Sunday.

Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz ordered the Israeli army to put off the transfer, saying the Palestinians had failed to fulfill a pledge to confiscate weapons from 52 militants in two towns relinquished earlier, the sources said. “The hand-over will be suspended until such time as [the Palestinians] perform,” a senior Israeli official said. “If they will perform, we will hand [Kalkilya] over.”

Palestinian officials disputed Israel’s position that militants in Jericho and Tulkarm should be disarmed. They said agreements for the hand-over of those towns called only for gunmen to register their weapons and refrain from carrying them around.

“The Israeli government has no excuse to delay the hand-over,” said Saeb Erekat, the chief Palestinian negotiator.

Israel pulled back its forces from Jericho and Tulkarm in the last two weeks after promising at a Feb. 8 summit in Egypt to transfer security responsibility for five West Bank cities, including Ramallah and Bethlehem. The transfers are seen as an important step toward reviving peace talks frozen since 2000.