An Israeli soldier guards a Jewish settlement south of Al-Khalil

JERUSALEM , June 9 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) – In a move described by experts as deceptive and misleading, Israel started Monday, June 9, dismantling deserted hilltop Jewish settlements.

"In line with a government decision, the Israel defense forces have started dismantling unauthorized outposts," Agence France-Presse (AFP) quoted Israeli military sources as saying, without naming the outposts or saying how many were targeted.

But a spokesman for the settlers said among those being evacuated was Neve Erez, an uninhabited outpost of a few pre-fabricated homes on a hilltop near the settlement of Maaleh Mikhmas, between Jericho and Ramallah.

The Israeli Yediot Ahoranot newspaper pointed out Monday that 16 outposts, mostly deserted caravans, would be dismantled.

Earlier in the day, Israeli Public Radio announced that the Israeli army commander of the Central Region, General Moshe kablinisky, would hand over a list of settlements to the Yehouda and Samra settlement council.

Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon voiced Wednesday, June 4, during Jordan ’s Aqaba summit  his government’s intention to start dismantling “unauthorized” settlements under the terms of the roadmap.

Israeli “Peace Now” movement that opposes settlement activity estimates the number of such settlements between 62 and 64.

Among the terms of the roadmap were freezing settlements and dismantling random settlement outposts established since Sharon took office in March 2001.

Israeli Settlement Council threatened in a communiqué issued on June 4 to confront any measures taken by the Israeli government to dismantle any settlement outposts in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip.

Number of Israeli settlers amounts to about 266.000 in the West Bank and 180.000 in Al-Quds (occupied Jerusalem ) in addition to 6.000 in the Gaza Strip.

Misleading Step

For his part, head of the Maps Division in the Palestinian House of the Orient Khalil El-Tafagky, an expert in settlement affairs, dismissed as “deceptive and misleading”  the talk of the Israeli government about evacuating Jewish settlement outposts.

“ Sharon currently talks about only 17 outposts, all of which are deserted, very small and not strategic, out of 117 established since Wye River agreement in 1996,” Tafakgy said in press statements on Monday.

He elaborated that the reason behind such settlements was Sharon himself – a then minister at Netanyahu’s cabinet – when he called upon settlers to establish 40 new settlement outposts.

“When Ehud Barak took office, he didn’t dismantle such settlement outposts but classified them into legal and illegal ones. Then, most of them turned into legal outposts from the Israeli viewpoint and spread in different parts of the West Bank until they reached 116,” he added.

He pointed out that four of such settlements have become large settlements, including Haramouna, established east of Oufra settlement to the east of Ramallah. There are two other settlements of this kind near “Eatmar” settlement established to the south of the West Bank city of Nablus .

On June 2, the Israeli government said that it was planning to dismantle not more than 10 settlements in the West Bank .