WASHINGTON: Israel s security chief said Tuesday that Egypt has the power to immediately stop smuggling into the Gaza Strip.
Internal Security Minister Avi Dichter made the comments after a meeting with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. His visit comes ahead of Rice s planned trip this weekend to the Middle East and a US-sponsored peace conference near Washington.
Dichter said Egyptian authorities can do it in one day, to block all forms of smuggling … into the Gaza Strip. It s under their ability; it s under their capability.
State Department spokesman Sean McCormack told reporters that Rice has raised the matter with the Egyptian government.
Since it does appear that there is still some flow from Egypt into Gaza – and the Egyptians acknowledge that – we ve talked to them about how we can ensure that that border is, in fact, a good, solid border that s sealed and controlled, he said.
No date has so far been set for the peace conference because the two sides remain so far apart on the starting point. Israel wants a vague joint statement of objectives, but the Palestinians want a detailed outline that would address core issues.
These include final borders, sovereignty over disputed Jerusalem and a solution for Palestinians who fled or were expelled from their homes in the war that followed Israel s creation in 1948.
