Evacuees from the Gaza Strip who settle in Nitzan and northern Ashkelon will receive more than other evacuees. The government approved the overall Nitzanim plan today, under which settlers from the Gaza Strip will be transferred en masse to the Nitzan and northern Ashkelon.
The government also decided that if over 5,000 evacuees are included in the plan, an independent regional council will be created for them.
Fourteen ministers, including Prime Minister Ariel Sharon, supported the Nitzanim plan. Only Minister of the Interior Ophir Pines-Paz (Labor) and Minister of the Environment Shalom Simhon (Labor) were opposed. They objected to the establishment of an independent regional council, claiming that it would cost the taxpayers a great deal of money, and to the exceptional benefits for those evacuated.
Sharon rebuffed the objections, saying, “Special situations require special solutions. This is a special case, which is why I have decided that if it will make things easier for the evacuated settlers, it should be done.”
More than 450 permanent housing units are slated for construction in the Nitzanim area, which will be under a separate regional council. An additional 200 permanent housing units are slated for northern Ashkelon, but carrying out this plan depends on the recruitment of at least 200 families.
Published by Globes [online] - www.globes.co.il - on June 26, 2005