Israeli v. Israeli: Riots Ensue After Gov't Enforces Law

More than 200 Israelis, both settlers and security forces, were injured in fighting that broke out when the security forces sought to enforce a government decree to evacuate an illegal settlement in Amona in the West Bank.

Israeli riot police wielding clubs and water cannons cleared out part of this illegal Jewish settlement outpost Wednesday, as resisters fought back with sticks, stones, bricks and paint. More than 200 were injured, one-quarter of them officers.

In anguished scenes reminiscent of last summer's Gaza withdrawal, the security forces dragged hundreds of protesters from rooftops barricaded in barbed wire and flattened empty homes with bulldozers and heavy machinery. The military said 32 people were arrested at the scene along with ``dozens of other rioters'' in the area.

The fierce battle was a likely harbinger of what lies ahead if Israel decides to leave other parts of the West Bank. Acting Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, the front-runner in the March 28 Israeli elections, is widely expected to withdraw from more areas of the territory and dismantle additional Jewish settlements if he wins.

The settlers used everything from eggs and rocks to sand and paint-filled balloons. The settlers saw what happened with Gaza, and weren't going to go nearly as quietly this time around. That's not to say that the Gaza withdrawals weren't without violence, but this confrontation was several magnitudes more violent.

Some Israelis realize that they've given up Gaza but haven't felt more secure as a result, so they're questioning the unilateral withdrawal from parts of the West Bank. It's a tough question, but the government is going forward nonetheless. Expect Hamas to crow that this is victory for them. It's nothing of the sort. Israel keeps giving the Palestinians an opportunity to do the right thing, but the Palestinians squander it at every turn.