Post by Salem6 on Sept 19, 2007 14:33:21 GMT
The Israeli government has declared the Gaza Strip a "hostile entity" in response to the continued rocket attacks by Palestinian militants there.
Qassam rockets are frequently fired from Gaza into southern Israel
The Israeli decision could lead to Israel cutting off vital water, fuel or electricity supplies to the territory.
The militant group, Hamas, which controls Gaza, said such a move would be considered a declaration of war.
In Jerusalem, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice also said the US considered Hamas a "hostile entity".
But she added that the US "would not abandon the innocent Palestinians" of Gaza.
Ms Rice arrived in Jerusalem on Wednesday for talks about re-starting the Middle East peace process.
Israeli public pressure for retaliation has grown since a rocket fired from Gaza hit an army base last Tuesday, injuring 69 troops.
Palestinian militant groups say the rocket fire is a response to Israeli military action in Gaza and the West Bank.
International law
Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's office said his security cabinet had approved the "hostile entity" classification at a meeting on Wednesday morning.
It is a declaration of war and continues the criminal, terrorist Zionist actions against our people
Fawzi Barhoum
Hamas spokesman
"Additional restrictions will be imposed on the Hamas regime, limiting the transfer of goods to the Gaza Strip, cutting back fuel and electricity, and restricting the movement of people to and from the strip," a statement said.
The sanctions will be implemented "following a legal review" to examine the legal and humanitarian consequences, the statement added.
Israeli officials reportedly hope the new measures will put pressure on Hamas, which ousted its rivals Fatah to seize control of Gaza in June, to halt rocket attacks on southern Israel.
"The objective is to weaken Hamas," Defence Minister Ehud Barak said at the meeting, an Israeli official told the Associated Press.
A spokesman for Hamas in Gaza, Fawzi Barhoum, condemned the decision.
"It is a declaration of war and continues the criminal, terrorist Zionist actions against our people," he said.
"They aim to starve our people and force them to accept humiliating formulas that could emerge from the so-called November peace conference," he added, referring to the US-sponsored talks expected later this year.
The Palestinian Information Minister, Riyad al-Malki, said the Palestinian Authority would ask the US to "pressure Israel to refrain from taking such action".
Correspondents say that by formally declaring Gaza "hostile", Israel could argue that it is no longer bound by international law governing the administration of occupied territory to supply utilities to its 1.5 million inhabitants.
But the current position is that, under international law, Israel remains legally responsible for the coastal strip, despite withdrawing two years ago, because it still controls Gaza's borders, air space and territorial waters.
news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/7002576.stm